seen through the eyes of goodwill

by vamer

ok

Seen Through the Eyes of GoodwillAuthor: PapakojiPublished: 2022

A fiction story from the LN series, Classroom of the Elite. Ichinose Honami originally from Class B was allotted in Class D when the school began. In a so called class full of defects Ichinose faces different challenges which the school offers to nurture her as a human.

Seen Through the Eyes of Goodwill

Chapter- 1

There are always moments in everyone's lives where you just stop, look up at the light blue sky, and remember that one single memory of when you had been the happiest person in the world. These could be memories like going for a walk under the vivid and tranquil trees, a peaceful night out under the twilight sky, a wild party at a friend's house, or whatever it is. We all have that one precious memory that we've decided to cherish forever.

It's also the same for me...

"You're so nice, Honami~!"

I could never forget the time when I had truly felt happiness, not the kind of happiness that you feel by receiving a gift for your birthday or when someone compliments your hair. It's the kind of happiness that you're only able to experience rarely in your life. The comfort, peace, and warmth that flows through your veins when you're finally able to say, "I'm happy." will never be forgotten, not by you, not by your heart.

However...there's also that point in your life when you had wished that you never even existed in the first place. The time when the lights fade out and the walls surrounding you start to disappear into the shadows, leaving you in the empty void known as loneliness.

For me, I was both the happiest and the unhappiest person of that day, Who knew that the words "turning your whole world upside down." would hit this hard?

I couldn't move. I was in shackles. My heart was imprisoned in a cell without walls, free but at the same time, had no place to go to.

Darkness. Darkness, darkness, darkness...It wrapped my heart like a present that could never be undone, a pandora's box except that this one, you can't open.

Where do I go?

How do I free myself from the shackles that keep me bound?

These were the questions I repeated over and over again, countless times. But no matter how many times I asked and sent my screams into the heavens, I never really got a proper answer. So instead, I chose to run away.

And that's how I got here...

Kōdo Ikusei Kōtō Gakkō, the most prestigious high school plotted at the highest pedestal for any educational institution there is.

A school not bound by the past. A school that only gives you one choice, that is, to move forward. A place where the past is beyond the walls and what's beyond the walls have nothing to do with what's within.

That's right...This is how I'm going to escape the empty box that I've trapped myself in.

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Tap...Tap...Tap...

Just a few months ago, I took the entrance exams of Kōdo Ikusei Kōtō Gakkō. I still can't believe how much time I put in studying just for a 3-hour test. But it was all worth it. Because as of this moment, I was walking along the hallways of the school I'll be staying until I graduate high school.

However...

"Uhhh...This is where my class should be."

As I opened the sliding door, the image of a normal classroom met my eyes. There were about 40 desks. Lockers were placed at the back of the classroom. These are probably used for books and learning materials of the sort because there were also lockers at the entrance of the school building. Those were the ones used for shoes.

But that wasn't important. Right now, the room was pretty much empty. I've been told before that I wake up too early, but I think I wake up at just the right time. And plus, I wasn't the only one in the room.

Near the back of the classroom, a girl with gorgeous light-red hair, almost pink, sat down. By just looking at her, I could tell what kind of person she is. Calm, patient, and mostly quiet, the type of person you wouldn't see talking that much.

I believe that it's important for classmates to get to know each other as soon as possible, especially in this kind of school where teamwork is said to be placed in high regard. That being said...

"Good morning," I greeted along with a smile.

"Huh? Oh, good morning..."

"Is this the right classroom? Class D of Chabashira-sensei, I mean..."

"I think so...I'm also supposed to be in Class D."

"Then that means we're classmates! Nice to meet you, I'm Ichinose Honami~! I look forward to seeing us work together," I said as I extended my right hand.

"N-nice to meet you, Ichinose-san...My name is Sakura Airi..."

The girl known as Sakura Airi looked at me with her blue eyes and furrowed eyebrows. She then turned towards my extended hand, and slowly, our hands connected.

"You're quite an early bird, aren't you, Sakura-san? I was told that the welcoming ceremony was canceled, so we were told to come straight to the classroom. Bummer."

"Why is that?"

"I was looking forward to meeting the student council president. I heard that his position has quite a bit of influence on the school. I just wanted to know how much."

As I said that, the sound of the sliding door piercing reached our ears.

A male student, most likely one of our classmates, entered the room.

"Good morning. Is this the classroom of Class D?"

"Yep, you're in the right room."

"I see. Nice to meet you two, my name is Hirata Yosuke."

"Hello, Hirata-kun, nice to meet you too. My name's Ichinose Honami."

"...I'm Sakura Airi..."

"Hello, Sakura-san, Ichinose-san. I was actually going to propose that we all introduce ourselves, but since the welcoming ceremony got canceled, I guess we could just wait and greet each person that enters."

"Yeah, you're right. The class list should be useful too."

And so, the clock had just clicked to 8:00 AM, and classes were supposed to start at 8:15. We only need to wait for 2 more students.

According to the class list, they should be...

Thud...

"Good morning to you two. Welcome to Class D."

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About 37 days later, a major revelation had befallen Class D. The truth behind the S-System was revealed. There are 4 classes, Class A, B, C, and D. Students that are overall excellent are placed at the top, Class A. While those who reside at the bottom, Class D, are seen as defects.

After hearing sensei's explanation of how the school works, I had wondered to myself what parts of me were considered defects.

Just like that, the past easily broke down even this school's supposed to be impregnable walls.

I thought to myself as I walked home, "Can I really escape to this school?"

"Hey, Ichinose-san, are you alright?"

"Huh? Yeah, I am. Why?"

"—What's wrong with Ichinose-san, Kushida-san?"

"Nono, there's nothing wrong."

"Mmmm..Really? Let us know when something's up, then, alright?"

"Yep. I promise."

I have to stay positive. I'm sure everything will be fine now. It doesn't matter what class I'm in. If I reach out to my classmates, I'll be able to do anything.

"Alright. I'm going to stop by somewhere, so you go on without me."

"Are you sure? We can come with you, you know?"

"I'll be fine, thank you."

"I see. Then we'll see you tomorrow, Ichinose-san!"

"Bye-bye!"

I waved my friends goodbye as they slowly walked towards the dormitories. I looked at their backs with glee, remembering the fact that I have people by my side, even we've only met a month ago.

After I could no longer see my classmates, I started walking towards my destination.

Just behind the nearest convenience store from the dormitories, there are benches under tranquil trees. The truth is, someone called me out here, a classmate did. As for why? Well, I'm surely about to find out.

"Sorry for being late," I called out to a boy sitting alone at one of the benches.

"It's fine. I should be the one saying sorry for calling you out when you could've used this time to study, especially with the coming mid-term exams."

The look in his eyes...I still can't tell the reason he called me out here for.

"So...What did you call me out here for, Ayanokouji-kun? I questioned him as I sat down on the other side of the bench.

"Ichinose, I need your help with something."

"What is it?"

As I sat right next to Ayanokouji-kun for about 5 minutes, he told me the current situation of our class. Since I'm in the same class as him, I was already aware of this. I've actually already made my own plans. Still, I listened to him.

"-And that's about it. What do you think?"

"You haven't told me about the specific details, but you said Horikita-san is having a study group, right? I'll make sure to get Sudou-kun and the others to join."

"I appreciate it."

"No worries, Ayanokouji-kun! I'll see you tomorrow."

"Right."

I didn't expect Ayanokouji-kun to discuss the current class situation at all.

Mmm... Interesting.

Chapter- 2

The next day—lunchtime.

It hasn't been long since the curtains hiding the true mechanics of this school were raised. That and alongside what Ayanokouji-kun and I discussed had shed light on a particular issue. Defects.

I don't believe that anyone of Class D has any traits or personalities that would be considered a defect. That's just a wrong way to evaluate students. However, if we're talking about the class as a whole, the fact that we lack unity can't be ignored.

Also, certain students from our class have trouble in their academics. At first, this shouldn't be a problem since we can always improve in that area. But, if the students themselves refuse help from other people, the real issue starts.

That being said, before things start to worsen, I'm going to reach out to Sudou-kun and the others. Ayanokouji-kun told me that things didn't go well on his part. Hopefully, the same thing doesn't happen to me.

"Ichinose-san."

A sharp but calm voice called out to me from behind. I quickly turned around and was met with the sight of a girl with long and pretty black hair.

"Hey, Horikita-san. Do you need anything?"

"Yes. I want you to forget whatever Ayanokouji-kun told you."

"Huh? Why? I thought you wanted to help Sudou-kun and the others in their studies? I can help with that."

Horikita-san let out a sigh, "What Ayanokouji-kun asked of you was unreasonable. If you want to help those three, you can do so in another way. There's no need for you to get involved in the study group."

"But why?"

I don't get it. Why is Horikita-san refusing my help? The unity of the class is already in shambles. If we get each other any more isolated than the current situation already is, we might never recover.

I looked at Horikita-san with furrowed eyebrows and a broken heart. But as if either not aware of what I'm feeling or she's just ignorant, those stark eyes of hers simply pried into mine.

"I appreciate your concerns, Ichinose-san. Please enjoy your lunch."

With that, the girl with pretty, long black hair disappeared, and the day was placed back into its track.

As I walked towards the cafeteria, I pondered about Horikita-san's words and what could be the reason she said them. Although I still don't understand how she's going to convince Sudo-kun in the others to attend her study group, I kinda get why she'd want to do it alone.

Huh? But wait. Why is Ayanokouji-kun helping her then? Like, maybe he's the one who proposed it to get his scores higher or perhaps...?

Thinking about this, it kinda makes sense one way or another. If they're dating, then it's not unusual for Ayanokouji-kun to be helping Horikita-san and being present in the study group. Ah, no! I feel bad. Looking at two people like that with assumptions...It's not right.

It took a lot of thinking on the way, but I finally arrived at the cafeteria. It should be a bit more crowded at a time like this, but it seems like today's different. Even then, you can still notice the variety in the cafeteria's atmosphere. There's a group of 3rd-year girls there...A possible 2nd-year couple there...scattered 1st-years eating alone ...and-there are two of my classmates sitting at the same table as a senpai.

Huh?

By instinct, I suddenly hid behind the nearest corner I could go to. Seated at that table over there are a senpai and two of my classmates, Kushida-san and Ayanokouji-kun.

If it were just the two of them, most likely, no one would find it unusual. I mean, Kushida-san has been making friends with almost everyone over the past month. Although the possibility that she was also able to reach out to the seniors can't be ruled out, I can't imagine Ayanokouji-kun coming along Kushida-san's little expedition.

Prying my senses into their conversation, I felt a part of my dignity fade away. Listening into someone else's conversation like this...it's definitely not something I would typically do. But...deep within me, there's a voice whispering the importance of the situation right in front of me.

At this distance, it's not possible for me to pick up whole sentences. And since the soft-voiced Ayanokouji-kun is the one talking the most, it's going to be even more difficult for me to comprehend the context of what they're talking about

However, looking at the movements of Ayanokouji-kun and the senpai's mouths, I can at least tell that numbers are related. Private Points, perhaps? If that's the case, then the contents of their conversation can be narrowed down to one thing: Negotiation. The question is: Negotiation about what?

Realizing that I can no longer peer into their voices any more than I have, I gave up and decided to just have my lunch as usual.

Horikita-san's study group should be held later. In that case, I should start picking up my phase.

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"Hey, hey, Honami!"

A soft voice deep within whispered.

Where am I?

Surrounded by darkness, I struggled to grasp anything around me. I know my eyes are open, yet I couldn't see anything. Are they really open, then?

"Open your eyes, Honami!"

Slowly, I obeyed the soft voice's order.

"Ichinose-san, are you alright?"

"Huh? Ehhh...I fell asleep."

"Jeez...What are you doing?"

Looking left. Looking right. At that moment, fragments of my memories matched up, and then I was reminded of why I'm here.

"Sorry, everyone. How are you doing?"

"Oh! Ichinose-chan is awake. Look at this. I finished the work you gave me. I couldn't even understand this lesson in class yesterday. Now, I can solve these problems without even blinking!"

Ike-kun cheered as he showed me the once empty worksheet I gave him now filled with answers. I skimmed through his solutions for a moment. There were some misses here and there, but considering how he did before, this was a miracle at its least.

"That's really amazing! I assume that you've done the others too?"

"Uh..hehe. I haven't started those yet. It took me a while to get this one."

"Kanji, you're an idiot," Yamauchi-kun joins in with a piece of paper held in his hand.

"Hey, Yamauchi-kun. How'd you do yours?"

"Here, Ichinose-chan. Take a look."

"Okay."

Just before I took Yamauchi-kun's worksheet, Ike-kun quickly peered over the answers for a moment. There, his lips formed an arc, and a festive expression appeared on his face.

"Haruki, you didn't even answer these questions!" Ike-kun mocked as he hovered his index finger over a few questions on the worksheet.

"Those are impossible! Even the others couldn't solve that properly."

"Even so, you could've at least tried, you idiot. That's what we're here for."

That's right. This is a study group for those who are having a hard time academic wise.

"Ike-kun's right, Yamauchi-kun. It may seem impossible at first, but once you try solving it, even if you get the answer wrong, you can at least understand why you got the question wrong in the first place."

"See? Hahaha."

"Then, Ike-kun. Since you seem to be understanding these types of problems better, you should help out Yamauchi-kun," I said with a smile.

"Eh? If Ichinose-chan says so, I can't refuse, can I? Come here, Haruki. Try answering it first."

Everything is going well. Except for those already excellent in academics like Yukimura-kun and Koenji-kun, pretty much every one of Class D attended the study group on their own will.

"Everyone's trying their best."

I cherished the sight in front of me. Everyone...Working together to overcome an obstacle. With this, we can definitely pass the mid-terms.

However, out of everyone here, there were two students isolated from the rest. I slowly came towards the small table they're occupying.

"How are you doing, Ayanokouji-kun, Horikita-san?"

"Everything seems to be going well, Ichinose," Ayanokouji-kun said, gazing at the scene in front of him.

"Yeah...I'm sorry for suddenly bringing up my own study group, Horikita-san."

"Why are you apologizing? I just told you to not get involved in my study group. You simply made your own. And it seems that even the only 3 people that were supposed to attend my study group find yours more convenient."

I can't tell what she truly feels. Horikita-san, who always speaks somewhat coldly, hid every meaning behind her sharp words. Even if she says that it's okay, I can't sit still until I know there are no ill feelings.

"I see. Well, since you two aren't doing anything, let's chat for a bit."

I pulled out one of the chairs from under the table and slowly sat down, making sure not to make too much noise that would disturb anyone.

However...

"There's no need for a chat. I'm leaving," Horikita-san said as she stood up.

"Wait, Horikita-san! Why?"

"I commend your work as a student, Ichinose-san. However, there will be a time where people won't be able to rely on you. If you continue going down this path, I wonder what'll become of the class?"

"What do you mean?"

"Nevermind, then. Do whatever you want."

"Horikita, that's enough," Ayanokouji-kun interrupts. A hint of wariness hid behind his voice.

"It's alright, Ayanokouji-kun. But Horikita-san, you care about the class, right? At least enough to hold a study group for Sudo-kun and the others."

Even after what I said, not a hint of change appeared on Horikita-san's expression.

"That was for my own sake. If they can't even solve the simplest of problems, who knows how much they will hold the class back? Well, not that it matters anymore. I've wasted my time on them. You can do as you please."

Ayanokouji-kun let out a sigh before starting to clean up. But, at that time, Horikita-san had already left.

I thought of her words and considered them carefully.

What am I supposed to do?

I don't want to take the hint that she is asking me to leave them behind to get expelled.If that indeed happens to be the case then I won't follow her words, because I will not let any of my friends suffer such fate.

Chapter 3

The day of the results of the midterms.

It was a solemn morning for Class D. Maybe it was because everyone's so silent or that Chabashira-sensei was calmly scanning the classroom. Either way, those two reasons were only part of the roots that caused such a heavy atmosphere.

The results.

The mixture of both the confident and the anxious formed the rain cloud hovering over us. Will our hard work bear the fruits of success? Or could it be...

"As you already know, today is the day you'll be receiving the results of your mid-term exams. Those who poured their efforts into studying, you shouldn't worry too much. However, I wonder about those living on the other half? I'm sure you know too."

A couple of students flinched as Chabashira-sensei finished her last statement. That's right. The consequence of failing to achieve a passing grade for our mid-terns is expulsion. Personally, I believe that it's too harsh of a punishment for just failing a test. There's always time and room for improvement. But looking at it from their angle, it's also a way to tell us, students, that this school is something you want to take seriously.

Chabashira-sensei took the broad piece of folded coated paper rolled into a tube and slowly untied it on top of the whiteboard, revealing the contents in a quick swish.

The contents consisted of everyone's name and the scores they got in each subject. Of course, it's logical to look for one's own name first when results are diffused to a community.

At the same time I saw each of my own scores, everyone had also looked through their own.

Sighs of relief and satisfaction escaped half of everyone's mouths.. Seeing that sight laid out in front of me, a sort of warmth filled my heart.

"We did it! Look at that! I can't believe I scored 50 in Math!"

Ike-kun was the first one to truly show his satisfaction.

It didn't take a while before everyone else followed his lead.

"Honestly, I'm impressed. I never expected all of you to achieve such high scores," Sensei said as she turned towards me with a smirk.

"Sensei, this means that you're going to have to take us more seriously now. We can study too. We're not defects."

"That may be true for now, but this is only one of the many obstacles coming your way. I'm sure Ichinose is the reason for this Class' success. You can't always rely on her."

"Plus, there's one of you barely hanging on to a thread."

Chabashira-sensei took a red marker and began drawing a line at the bottom of the English results. The person just above that line was Sudo-kun.

"The passing score for this exam is 45. Exactly your score, Sudo. Rejoice with this miracle for now. But do not expect the same thing to happen again. That is all."

Everything Chabashira-sensei said was correct, except for one. I indeed was one of the reasons everyone scored so high because of the study group I held. However, Kushida-san also played a big part in our success in passing the midterms. I didn't get to talk to her about it before, but I'll make sure I do now.

Well, I should congratulate everyone first...

"Ichinose-chan, Kushida-chan, you are a blessing! Without your help, we would've had to say bye-bye to Kanji and Ken," Yamauchi-kun exclaimed as he walked towards the girls.

"Hah? You would've been gone as well if it weren't for Ichinose-chan and Kushida-chan."

"You see, I merely set my grades at the average. I haven't gone serious yet."

Ike-kun and Yamauchi-kun kept on exchanging jokes until another voice joined in.

"I'm glad everyone passed. Yamauchi-kun and Ike-kun and the others gave it their all," said Kushida-san.

"Hey! Let's celebrate after this. Wanna join us, Kushida-chan?"

"Sure! I'm down."

"Nice! Want to join us, Ichinose-chan?"

Having my name mentioned, everyone in the circle set their eyes on me.

Since Kushida-san is also coming with, I have no reason to refuse. Plus, today's an important day for Class D. Hanging out is a good way to celebrate it.

"I'll join then. Where do you think we should go?"

"Shouldn't Keyaki Mall be fine?"

"No good, Kushida-chan. We're still low on points, you know?" Ike-kun quickly replied.

"Oh. You're right, sorry."

"It's fine! Actually, the best place to celebrate our victory today is inside the dorms. That way, we can talk without anyone from the other classes bothering us."

"Mmm...Whose room, though? Will it be in Ike-kun's room?"

"Nonono, we'll crash into Ayanokouji's room!"

"Eh? Will Ayanokouji-kun be okay with that?"

"Don't worry! Ayanokouji never refuses!"

In Ayanokouji-kun's room, huh. I'm not really sure if I'll be able to approach Kushida-san since the matter is regarding Ayanokouji-kun. Still, I can't suddenly back out because that may cause a misunderstanding.

"Should we go to the convenience store first, or should we inform Ayanokouji-kun? He already left a while ago."

"We should buy what we need first. That way, Ayanokouji has no reason to refuse."

"Okay. I'll get Ken. He doesn't have club meetings today."

I'm starting to feel bad for Ayanokouji-kun. He's often the topic of the girls too. Everyone's curious about his relationship with Horikita-san and why they're always together, including me. Well, it's not fair to make assumptions, but in a way, Ayanokouji-kun seems like the type of person who would prefer to keep their status a secret. That's just me thinking, though.

"Then, should we go now?"

"Yeah!"

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It didn't take long before we bought what we needed and headed straight to the dormitories. It was about 5:30 PM at the moment, so the orange sunset was still visible over the distance.

"Is this the right room?" Kushida-san turned towards Ike-kun, who was holding two plastic bags filled with junk food and soft drinks.

Those kinds of snacks aren't really healthy, but having them around to share always delivers a sort of pleasure at a time of casual conversations with friends.

"This should be it," Ike-kun assured. "Press the doorbell, Haruki. My hands are full."

"Okay,"

Ding...Dong...

The familiar sound of the doorbell reached my ears as it echoed throughout the other side of the door and into the hallways.

A few seconds later, the lock clicked, and the door opened. The behind on the other side was none other than Ayanokouji-kun.

"You guys, what are you doing here?"

"We came to celebrate! Everyone passed, you know?"

"I see. And you chose my room as the venue?"

"Yep! We brought food, so don't worry about anything, Ayanokouji!" Yamauchi-kun said as he quickly barged into the room. "Thanks for having us!"

Hm?

There's one detail that Yamauchi-kun didn't notice because of his aggressive way of inviting himself over. Right above the welcome mat, there were two pairs of shoes. One must be Ayanokouji-kun while the other...We'll find out soon.

Just as we entered Ayanokouji-kun's room, the sight of a familiar black-haired girl met our eyes.

"Eh? Horikita-san, what are you doing here?"

"Horikita-san? Horikita-san is here?" Kushida-san asked, confused, and curious at the same time.

Horikita-san, huh.

"What's the meaning of this, Ayanokouji? Could it be that the rumors about you two are actually true?"

Don't do it, Yamauchi-kun!

"Rumors? What nonsense are you talking about? The center of attention, Horikita-san, finally spoke up.

"I mean, you two are always together. Horikita-san never talks to anyone other than Ayanokouji. It was inevitable that someone's gonna think something's up."

"Is that so? Well, you're mistaken. Ayanokouji-kun's nothing more than a classmate. My business with him is already done, so if you don't mind, I'll be leaving now."

"Wait a minute, Horikita-san," I spoke up,

"What is it, Ichinose-san?"

"Don't you want to join us? I think it's a good idea since we're going to be working together more and more in the future. Celebrating our first success as a class is essential in forming bonds, even if it's just the 7 of us here."

Horikita-san considered my words. I just know. She looked behind, everyone was staring at her. However, Ayanokouji-kun's eyes, in particular, carried a different message than the rest. Whatever those eyes of his meant, I'm thankful for what he did.

"Fine."

Without any more attempts to leave the room, Horikita-san reached towards her bag and took out a book the size of her hand. She sat on Ayanokouji-kun's bed and began flipping through the pages. She stayed there until it was time to go home.

Ahh...The situation's like this again...How am I supposed to get things done?

"Cheers!"

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"Thanks for helping me clean up, Ichinose, Kushida."

"No worries, Ayanokouji-kun. Ike-kun and the others really like your room, don't they?" I giggled.

"That seems to be the case, unfortunately."

"Ayanokouji-kun, you have a chance to become popular, you know? I think you just need to reach out to people more often. Right, Ichinose-san?"

"Huh?"

I scanned Ayanokouji-kun from top to bottom, trying to understand what Kushida-san meant.

"I guess Ayanokouji-kun has the looks? He looks pretty sharp."

"Right?"

"Thank you for your praises, but I think I'll stay as I am right now."

mrmrmrm...mrmmrmr

We turned our attention towards Ayanokouji-kun's vibrating phone. He's receiving a call.

"I should take this. You two can go now. I'll take care of the rest."

"Okay! Thanks for letting us use your room, Ayanokouji-kun! See you, Ichinose-san," Kushida-san got up and quickly left with her bag.

I should probably go home too.

Huh...?

"Kushida-san left her phone."

I reached towards the lonely phone misplaced on the top of the bed.

I should still catch up to Kushida-san.

That said, I took my bag and quickly left.

"See you next time, Ayanokouji-kun!"

It seems like she already went down the elevator. But wait, it's going all the way down to the ground floor. Why?

As soon as the elevator was available again, I followed suit. Should I just wait in the lobby? I still want to ask her some questions. This might be an excellent opportunity to do so.

Night had already struck, and the lamps are already turned on. I looked up for a brief moment to admire the stars but quickly focused back on the mission in hand.

There she is.

Slowly walking towards the guardrail facing the ocean, Kushida-san's figure blended well with the shadows.At that moment, I thought that she was really beautiful.

I was about to call out to her, but...

"...Ahh...How angelic can you be?"

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Chapter- 4

' "...Ahh...How angelic can you be?"

Letting out a deep sigh, the cute short-haired girl admired the blank skies.

As I got closer to Kushida-san, a strong feeling dwelled within me.

Am I in the wrong place at the wrong time? I questioned myself as I dropped my phase.

"Ugh. Horikita and you...You two are so annoying! Actually, no. You're more annoying. What I hate more than stuck up snobby girls are those who're capable of putting them down but aren't doing a single thing. Why are you trying to be such an angel? Hiding your flaws with that smile and figure of yours... Ugh. No wonder why boys flock to your call. How stupid, Ichinose."

With each word that came out of Kushida-san's mouth, I felt a part of me shatter. I realized how dense I was. If she hadn't said my name, I would've never found out that her sharp and aggressive words were directed to me. No...I did know. I just didn't want to believe it.

"Ah, she's the worst! So stupid! You're so stupid! Fix your damn angel attitude. It's so annoying!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The sound of her shoes hitting the guardrail echoed over and over.

At that moment, I knew it was time for me to leave, forget what I saw, and go back to normal. I'd witnessed a forbidden side of such a gentle and sweet girl. A classmate whom I called a friend. An ally.

My heart dyed black, I turned away from the scene and started picking up my phase...However...

Ding!

My hand vibrated as the plain sound echoed throughout the area. It was Kushida-san's phone.

"Who's there?"

It was already too late. I ignored the warnings and signals whispering inside my head, and now, I have to face the consequences that I never even knew existed until this moment.

"Who are you?"

"...It's just me...Ichinose," I said, turning around. "You left your phone at Ayanokouji-kun's place. Here..."

She quickly walked towards me with a look as if to curse me. She quickly swiped her phone.

"Did you hear?" Kushida-san questioned, her eyes sharp enough to cut through my soul.

I don't know what to say.

"I-I didn't..."

"Oh? So you can lie too? I wonder what other things you could possibly be hiding..."

Kushida-san gently placed her right hand on my shoulder, and slowly, her hand slid through my arm. Her soft touch introduced a strange feeling. She let go of me shortly after.

"...What are you doing?"

Kushida-san peered straight into my eyes, sending chills throughout my body.

"Listen, Ichinose. If you dare breathe a word to anyone about this, I'll make sure the next 3 years of your stay here will be hell."

"...How would you do that?" I asked with a trembled voice.

"I'll make sure that Class D never achieves anything. For the next 3 years, everyone will only go through failure after failure after failure."

"T-That's cruel...I don't understand why you resent me, but if there's anything I can do to change that, I'll try my best..."

My voice was weak. I've never been put in a situation like this before. But, for some reason, I felt as if I was put in a similar place a while back.

When was that?

"Ah, there you go again," Kushida-san quickly broke my train of thoughts.

"That's the exact reason why I think you're so annoying. What's with the angelic act? That smile of yours. That figure. No wonder boys flock around you."

"T-That..."

"Well, because you're so angelic, you might not even care what I do to you. Then, what about your precious classmates you seem to care so much about?"

"What do you mean?"

Kushida-san went closer to my ear. Her soft whispers came out.

"I'll spread rumors that you never left Ayanokouji-kun's room the night of the celebration."

My heart froze. And then it shattered. Just because I became curious for a second, I got Ayanokouji-kun, and the others involved too.

"You know that isn't true..."

"Who cares? Rumors are rumors for a reason. Nobody gives a damn whether they're true or not. You and anyone else involved will still suffer."

The girl I used to admire let out a smirk.

"Fitting headline, is it not? Class D's Angel's Secret Boyfriend."

"Please stop. I promise not to breathe a word about this to anyone."

After hearing that, Kushida-san turned around and took a deep breath. She put her hands together. From my point, it looked like she was praying. But she quickly turned around again.

I was met with the sight of a seemingly sweet smile.

"I'm sure you won't! Well then, Ichinose-san, it's getting pretty late, isn't it? It's dangerous for two girls to be alone in the middle of the night, so I think this is a good night!"

As the girl with the sweet persona passed by me, a soft whisper reached my left ear.

"I guess this is our little secret."

I turned around and stared at Kushida-san's back as she walked away.

Please tell me...Who's the real you?

———————————————————————————————————

Despite what happened recently, today's morning was filled with sunshine. The skies splashed with colors of excitement serviced my eyes. Of course, it was another day for school.

I reached for my bag isolated in the middle of the room, and quickly left. The click of the door broke the morning silence.

Every morning of mine within the walls of this school have shared the same mutual feeling. I can't put my finger on it, but that one word enough to describe this sense shied at the back of my throat.

Well, there's no helping it at this point.

Thoughts of emotions clouded my mind as I pressed the elevator button down to the lobby. Just then, the recent memory of my incident with Kushida-san resurfaced through my mind. The vision of her other side forcibly occupied my head as I pushed the elevator button five or more times without even realizing it.

The elevator carriage slowly descended down to another floor before reaching the ground floor first. It was already in the boys' floors.

Ding!

The signal of the opening door tickled my ears. Sure enough, the door opened.

"Oh!"

As the sight of the person behind the elevator door filled my vision, a brief gasp slid through my lips.

"Mm? Good morning, Ichinose."

"Good morning, Ayanokouji-kun."

I freed one of my folded arms and slightly shook it to welcome him while also freeing some space.

"Did you have a good sleep last night? You woke up pretty early."

"I wonder about that. I'm not really one to remember his own dreams. How about you?"

Hmmm...Actually, I dreamed of my family outside. It's been over a month already, but it seems like I still miss them. Haha. Don't worry, though, it was a good dream."

"That's good to hear. They probably miss you as much as you miss them."

"Yep! How about you? Are you not feeling homesick, Ayanokouji-kun?"

"I guess you can say that."

"Oh? Why is that?"

I leaned closer to his side with a curious smile. Ayanokouji-kun's not that sociable inside the classroom, so I don't get that many opportunities to get to know him better.

"That's a secret."

He quickly shut me down, though.

I guess he doesn't want to talk about his life outside the school. It's understandable. Most students of Kōdo Ikusei probably came here for personal reasons that kept them shackled until they fled here. Could Ayanokouji-kun be one of those students? I can only guess.

It wasn't long before the elevator carriage finally reached the lobby. We did have to stop by a few floors for other students to enter, but it didn't take more than a few seconds.

"Then, I guess I'll go ahead."

"Wait!" I gently tucked his uniform in between my fingers.

"What's wrong?"

I still have this one question left unanswered. Of course, it was the one I was going to ask Kushida-san about, but we all know how that went. Most likely, Ayanokouji-kun has no shed of knowledge about Kushida-san's other side, so I can still ask him about the past test papers they got from our seniors.

"Do you mind if we go together? We're classmates, after all."

"I have no particular problem with it, but..." he said as his eyes traveled across the lobby.

At first, I didn't understand what he meant, but after following his gaze, I realized that we were gathering a bit of attention.

"Oh. I guess we should pick up our phase, then?"

Ayanokouji-kun nodded in silence with a bit of wariness still lingering.

As we got closer to the school building, I decided to quickly jump the gun.

"Ayanokouji-kun, can I ask you a question?"

"I'm listening.?" He slightly turned towards his side.

"Were you the one who got us those test papers for our mid-terms?"

I looked straight into his brown eyes, his apathetic expression showing no signs of change.

"You saw us in the cafeteria, then?" He quickly returned the question.

"Yeah..."

"It was Kushida's idea. Apparently, the selling of previous test questions is well-practiced. I only helped in convincing for a good price."

"I see. That was a big help, Ayanokouji-kun. Thank you on behalf of our class. You probably have your own reasons as to why you didn't announce your influence, right?"

"You can say that, although to me it looks like I did not have any influence worthy to mention."

"Well, it seems to me like you are being modest. Let's do our best together again."

I gave him a warm smile, and he looked into my eyes for a brief moment.

"Right."

Kushida-san's idea, huh.

Thinking of Ayanokouji-kun's words, it seems like Kushida-san is helping the class with her best, I should better not spoil her image in class by mentioning some random words she spouted out to relieve stress.

'Were they really random?' there was a whisper in my head. Deep down I knew the answer of that question but I chose to deny it.

Chapter- 5

As I entered the school building with Ayanokouji-kun, several students greeted me including students from other classes. It was painfully apparent that Ayanokouji-kun did not have many friends, perhaps he was picky about making friends.

"Good morning, Ichinose-san." Ike-kun greeted me with enthusiasm, but his expression changed when he noticed Ayanokouji beside me.

"Good morning Ike-kun." his face lit up again.

Upon entering the class I discovered Hirata-kun at the center of attention. He took a long breath and started "I want you guys to listen to me seriously for a minute. Last month we received zero points due to our carelessness. But assuming that our midterm test points will be taken in for calculation of the points next month we will hopefully get more points"

Everyone listening to him showed some relief on their face. "But, after hearing Chabashira sensei I think things will get harder from now, if we don't work together we are bound to fail, so I would expect you all to support each other in the fields you-"

BANG !!! The sound echoed through the class stopping Hirata in his tracks. Sudou got up "Do whatever you want, just leave me out of this."

With those words he got out of class.

"Count me out too, Hirata boy." Kouenji said. He did not even open his eyes to check Hiratas' expression in response.

Our class was failing miserably in the test of unity. Hirata stood there with a gloomy face until all the girls flocked around him.

"Hirata-kun!! Tell us your idea, you have our full support."

"Thank you guys I am glad you guys are up to help me."

I approached my seat calculating how to proceed from this point. Sudou and Kouenji refuse to cooperate. The students below average in academics are already struggling to keep up. As I was scanning the class my gaze fell on Horikita and Ayanokouji.

They might have an idea for how to proceed, with hope in my heart I stood up to approach Horikita-san. But suddenly Sudou entered the class, followed by Chabashira-sensei. With a little disappointment I sat on my seat, just then Horikita glanced towards me and our eyes met, behind her cold red eyes I sensed hope.

Chabashira sensei began the lecture as usual and lunch break showed up in no time. Once sensei left the class Yamauchi-kun approached the guy behind my desk.

"Professor, as a sign of our true friendship and your love for games. Buy this limited edition game from me for 20,000 points."

"No way, I am also short on points like you."

Yamauchi-kun immediately left him with a face one would make after sipping some green tea for the first time. As my gaze shifted from the scene I saw Hirata approach horikita, perhaps he shares the same intent as mine. As I started moving in his direction, multiple girls approached me.

"Ichinose-san want to join us for lunch?"

"Ah.. I appreciate your invitation but I have got plans at the moment."

Oh okay feel free to join us if you find some time before lunch ends."

"Sure."

I reached the window seats where Horikita and Hirata seemed to discuss something, while Ayanokouji seemed to be just listening to them.

"Hey everyone, what are you guys discussing?"

"Welcome Ichinose-san, we were discussing some strategy to unite the class." Hirata answered.

"That is great. I was about to ask you guys the same thing. So any bright ideas yet?

We both looked at horikita.

"What Hirata stated in morning was a fact. But at the moment the ignorant ones in class can not sense the magnitude of threat that is approaching us. I propose let them be, this will help us drop off some dead weight holding us back." she said as coldly as possible.

Before I could speak up, Hirata-kun spoke up "I disagree on that.I am not in favour of the idea to leave behind anyone."

"Then you better suggest a solution of yours before you shot mine down." Horikita delivered a counterattack.

Silence filled the air, as Hirata went deep into thoughts. Horikita looked at me as if checking if I agree with her or I am also thinking of a different solution.

"What do you say, Ichinose-san?" she asked me.

"I am not in favour of leaving classmates behind either, but at the moment we are walking in the dark. I suggest that we all present here should invest some time and attention to the students who are prone to danger, especially Sudou." I proposed.

"That is a decent idea to follow Ichinose-san." Hirata approved.

"Count me out, I am not offering any of my time for them." Horikita disagreed without any second thoughts.

"I will leave then if we are done here." she stood up.

"Horikita" Ayanokouji spoke at last.

"What is it?"

"We have already been caught off guard by the rules of the S-system. Lax behaviour of some students delivered deadly blows to our class points, it is still hard to guess what consequences will follow the class if a student gets expelled." Ayanokouji explained her in a calm manner, exploiting the benefit of doubt to the most.

Horikita looked at him for a moment, then turned to Hirata.

"I will not observe any particular student but I will be on lookout to how things work around here."

Hirata's face lit up. He nodded to her and she left without turning back.

"Thank you Ayanokouji kun, that was a big help."

"I was just stating facts to her."

As Hirata thanked Ayanokouji, I asked "What do you think about my plan Hirata?"

"That is a decent plan for now, I will hold more study sessions for the students who cooperate with me."

"That is nice. I will look out for Ike and Yamauchi along with others."

"I will ask Suzune to look after overall discipline and inform us of anything new she finds about the system."

"Sounds nice to me, what do you want to do Ayanokouji-kun?" I asked Ayanokouji out of curiosity of what his thoughts are on this situation.

"I guess I will try to improve my academics."

He has a point his grades were below average last midterms in some subjects.

"Would you like to join our group?" I wondered if he would join us.

"Guess I will try to study myself. I will come to you guys if I have any doubts."

Guess he does not prefer group studies. I hope he will be okay on his own. I nodded at him. Idea of including Kushida-san crossed my mind, but I was doubtful to include her at the moment.

"What are you guys talking about ?" A sweet voice filled the air, what timing. It was Kushida-san.

Just as Hirata-kun was about to open his mouth, the bell rang and lunch ended.

"I will explain it to you once the school ends, Kushida-san."

Kushida nodded with a little disappointment on her face. We all went back to our seats.

One after another class went by as I enjoyed the way most of us were lost in academics. Randomly I noticed Sudou trying to focus but losing it within a short span of time.

Classes ended as usual and I headed to the cafeteria with the girls I turned down during the lunch.

Before leaving I looked back to the class I saw Hirata was talking with Kushida, probably explaining to her the plan. I wondered if she would cooperate once she came to know I suggested the idea behind the plan.

As we walked towards the pallet cafe, Shinohara-san who was walking beside me silently up until now asked me with a smirk on her face.

"Hey, Ichinose-san which guy do you think is hottest in our school?"

Eh ?!!!

Chapter- 6

EH ??!!!

"Which guy do I find the hottest? I have not checked them out."

Shinohara-san thoroughly enjoyed the disarray she caused in my train of thought.

"Ah I see, not yet huh." she sounded a little down though.

"Why would you ask it out of blue though, Shinohara-san?"

"What?! No one told you??" Mei-chan walking beside me exclaimed.

"Uh no ?" ok now I am genuinely confused.

"It is a girls meeting to decide the hierarchy of hotness among the guys present in this school." Mei-chan explained it like it was some natural ritual.

Now this is not time to do these things given the unknown dangers hovering over us. But then again it is natural to enjoy your school life, maybe I am actually overthinking stuff. I will join them into this I guess.I gave out a smile.

"I might not be able to vote yet but I am looking forward to who is placed where in the hierarchy."

We entered the pallet to discover a flock of girls all from our class, they have ganged up many tables here. Kei was in the center of the unit and we were greeted by Satou-san.

Soon Kushida-san and the last batch of girls joined us, our gaze met for a brief moment. She was as pretty as ever, if guys had a poll like this she would reach at top effortlessly.

"So who should be the one collecting votes and organizing stuff?" Kei asked.

"It should be someone with no bias at the moment or else they might rig the votes in according to their liking." Shinohara had a point, but really, who would go that far for this kind of stuff?

'AGREED!!'

Everyone answered in unison, which also answered the question I had in my mind. I looked at Mei-chan who was already looking at me, the same pieces connected in our head.

"Wai-"

"Ichinose-san has not even checked all the guys out; she is best for the work." Mei-chan won even before I could start the, she upped me in the game of speed effortlessly.

Everyone looked at me, no way I am getting out of this now. I got info on names of most of the popular students who will supposedly lead the classes, I do not expect it to affect my loyalty for the poll anyway.

"Sure I am up for it, I guess." upon hearing my response Kushida-san let out a sly smile when our eyes met.

"You have to keep the votes anonymous, do remember that Ichinose." Kei warned me.

"Sure" how come they can entrust me with such confidential detail?

Guess it is not that hard to figure it out who voted for who.

"Okay everyone, send Ichinose-san a direct message of the candidate you nominate as 'hawtest'. Kushida-san was enthusiastic. She looked like a child having fun, guess she also wants to enjoy school to the fullest.

The name Hirata flooded my phone in the message app, well did not know they found him so 'hawt'.

I calculated all numbers, I observed almost all girls around us voted hirata, no other name even popped up. It was one sided annihilation of the male student body.

"It is done and the first and only place belongs to Hirata-kun." The air filled with excitement and malice at the same time. I would say the girls felt the thrill, pure thrill of sitting among friends yet enemies, or shall I say comrades yet rivals.

There was no need for discretion to begin with only the name of Hirata came up anyways. The poll continued for the following positions, many pictures taken by fangirls(more like stalker girls) came into light whenever a name was not able to find it's face in some heads.

After half an hour the results were out, groups and strategies were formed. Everyone left the cafe and headed toward dormitories, as Shinohara-san and Mei-chan approached me.

"Want to walk to dorms with us ?" Shinohara invited me.

"I have some business in the convenience store, I have to buy some tea I guess." I politely declined her.

"Oh ok, see ya."

I headed towards the store, it was a pleasant stroll. The red sunlight from the sunset basked over me. I remembered how me and my sister walked back home after her playtime was over. Lost in thoughts I entered the convenience store.

As I went toward the drink section I observed even though it was a little late the store was fairly crowded with students in school uniform of all years. Guess some prefer to hangout outside rather than crash into their rooms.

While I searched for tea in the drinks section in the empty lane I came across beer cans, arranged in 5 square shapes of 9 bottles. They were supposedly for people of legal age for drinking. I guess only teachers and staff can buy it since none of us will hit 20 while we are in this school.

I proceeded further to discover tea packets just around the corner. Once I picked up my share of packets I started heading back, on turning around the corner I found another girl in a school uniform looking at the soft drinks. She had purple hair which stood out, and was a little taller than me.

As I walked across the lane I glanced at the beer cans once again out of curiosity like a child does. I saw one of the cans was gone from the center of the square. Maybe some teacher or staff got it for themselves.

I reached the counter which had an unusually long queue.

"It surely is a busy day today." I said to the guy in front of me to check if that was the case.

"It seems like they are having technical issues, no one have been able to make their purchase for the last 5 minutes." he replied.

Wait, then that means there must be a staff or teacher in line too, 'I am curious to see if any of the teachers I know prefer beer'. I scanned the line in one go but I only found students.

'Haha seems like someone stole the can', I joked to myself.

I realised it was not a joke, since you cannot make their purchase if it is an error on the technical side. I assume it must be among someone in the line trying to ease their guilt of shoplifting by purchasing something simple like candy.

Traumatic nostalgia hit me as questions came to my mind 'What would one gain from stealing anything like beer?' 'Perhaps they are addicted to it ?' different questions crossed my mind as suddenly gates slid open. The purple haired girl went out of the store without buying anything.

My heart skipped a beat when it dawned upon me that she might be the shoplifter, one who is confident enough to walk out without buying anything. I asked the girl behind me to place all my items to their respective places in exchange for my position in line.

I rushed out of the store gates to find her turning just about the corner, I decided to tail her for no solid reason. 'Why am I even doing this?' but somewhere in my heart I had the curiosity to know if she was the one.

As I crept around the same corner she just passed I saw her walking away slowly with a small girl with white hairs and a hat.I knew her, she was Sakayanagi Arisu. Their pace kept decreasing, probably due to Sakayanagi-san's leg condition until they suddenly stopped, the tall girl turned to face Sakayanagi, she had a displeased expression on her face, as they talked it grew more unpleasant.

After some brief exchange they stopped talking and the tall girl put her hand in her bag. No it can't be. She pulled out a beer can out of her bag and showed it to Sakayanagi-san. She was the shoplifter after all.

Chapter- 7

Did Sakayanagi-san blackmail the girl to steal the can? Or am I being hasty in drawing conclusions. Maybe she just caught her red handed like me but decided to confront her head on. If that is the case then she would hand her to school immediately.

But, the girl put the beer can back in her bag and started walking with Sakayanagi-san towards the dorm. I still can not understand if they planned it out, or did Sakayanagi-san decide not to hand her over to school.

Is she from class A ? If that happens to be the case then it is natural for them to hide such theft in order to protect the class from any unforeseen damage as Ayanokouji-kun mentioned today.

Whatever be the case now that the can is back in the bag, I can not click pictures for possible evidence. As I was lost in thoughts while I was standing at the corner spying them from far, a sharp voice called from my immediate vicinity.

"Ichinose-san."

"Eeekk!!"

It was Horikita Suzune, surprising anyone like that would give people with weak hearts an easy heart attack.

"You seemed to be glued to the wall for a while now. May I ask what you were doing?" She questioned me in a cold tone.

"Ah I was spying on some students acting unusually, but it seems like it was a mistake on my part." I lied to her since I did not confirm anything at the moment except the one who stole the can.

That is what I said to myself but, deep down I was afraid to report shoplifting for some reasons.

"I see, I would like to ask more about this but at the moment I have something worse to report." she had a hint of uneasiness in her cold eyes.

"What is it Horikita-san?" Now I am curious.

"Right now I must return to the dorms, I will narrate it to you and Hirata-kun together since I am not a fan of telling things twice." she squashed my curiosity at once.

"Oh okay, want to walk to dorms together?" I invited her.

"I don't have any reason to refuse." She accepted it, more like did not reject it.

We walked to dorms in silence, but somehow it did not feel that uncomfortable. As we strolled towards the dorms I was lost in the beauty of campus again, street lights that lit the dark footpath. The gentle wind that soothed us from the hot summer.

"I will take my leave now Ichinose-san." Horikita casually interrupted my train of thoughts.

"Sure let's meet tomorrow to discuss our progress." I said enthusiastically.

"I hope that is the case." she left with those parting words.

I returned to my room. After changing I thought about the day while I washed my face, it surely was happening. The meet with girls at Pallet was fun but what Sakayanagi was trying to do with the shoplifter still remained a question. I studied for some time but I felt sleepy soon since I did not have any tea to keep me awake.

"Why are you hitting Big sis?!! Please stop, mother."

"This needs to be done. You move out of here right now."

All senses of sounds snapped out. I just saw their lips moving but no words reached me, I felt pure horror run through me as I woke up back on my study table.

This is too much to call as a bad dream, I glanced at the clock which showed me it was half past 3. I drank some water and jumped to my bed like a kid, I wonder what anyone will think if they saw me doing this.

It was still time to sleep but I felt wide awake. I started studying and fell asleep instantly.

The next day I reached school and I and Hirata-kun gathered near Horikita-san's seat, for some reason all of us were early to school.

"I have made two different groups of students based on their academic levels, we are going to hold study sessions from tomorrow. I and Kushida-san are leading each group. Ike-kun and Yamauchi-kun have also joined the group thanks to Kushida-san." Hirata reported.

"That is nice progress, Hirata-kun. This would help us to fortify our defenses in the field of academics." I complimented his achievements.

"Although most of the academically weak students have joined us Sudou-kun continues to reject our invitations." Hirata added the sad news.

"I see, that would prove to be a problem in future."

"Horikita-san did you find anything worth mentioning ?"

She took a deep breath and started.

"Yesterday I was visiting different clubs reading the rules and perks of achievements they offered. I found out that if a student of a class excels in the tournaments or overall competition, then the class is also awarded class points." she revealed a very useful piece of information.

"Just what I would expect from you Horikita-san, we can use this to our benefit." Hirata said with a glimmer of hope.

"Generally it is difficult for 1st years to derive much benefit from it unless they are exceptionally talented. So at the moment we should look for more potential candidates to join clubs."

"I see, that is supposed to motivate students to participate." I added.

"Although that is the case we do have an exceptional student from our class, who is probably the only first year nominated to play in the tournament this year."

"Who might that be, Horikita-san?"

"Sudou Ken from Basketball club."

Wow, I knew Sudou played well but I did not think he would be the best among the first years. If he just gets a hold of his academics he will be a major contribution to class.

"That is a decent contribution to class in his own way."

" I do not think so."

"Why do you think so, Horikita-san?" I asked out of curiosity.

"He only excels in one field while he runs away from all other battles. This causes more damage to class than it delivers profit." She had a point.

The air was filled with silence, none of use had any way to make Sudou study. I looked at Ayanokouji-kun who was silent this whole conversation.

"There is one more thing I would like to add against Sudou."

The atmosphere grew heavier, she did mention yesterday that she had something to report.

"Yesterday when I was returning to dorms after visiting the last club, I discovered Ryuuen-kun and three other class C students ganging up on Sudou near the tennis court."

I see so that is the reason she was out so late yesterday. We all listened to her silently.

" I did stop them before things got out of hand, but it seemed like Ryuuen had taken interest in Sudou, I assume you all have heard the rumours about Ryuuen by now." She had a questioning look in her eyes.

"Yes, I have heard rumours that he is in full control of class C. He rules on everyone through brute force. It will be troublesome if he keeps provoking Sudou the way you stated he did." Hirata confirmed her words.

"I suggest we leave him be and learn the lesson." Horikita was ready to drop Sudou off like always.

"But if we do that and they happen to get in a fight, then it will work against us if Sudou suffers any injuries that would hamper his progress in basketball." I stated.

"I agree on that but how do you plan on domesticating him? Explaining things to him would be least effective."

We all went deep in thought, Hirata was the first one to break the silence.

"We should tail him after he leaves class till he enters his dorm after club activities."

What Hirata proposed was to coldly breach his privacy in that time period, but given the situation such steps were necessary.

"Who do you expect will invest so much time on him? I doubt anyone among us would be willing to do so." Horikita's logic was sound.

We all looked at each other one by one until all eyes fell on Ayanokouji-kun.

"You guys are not asking me to do it are you?" He spoke innocently.

"Yes." Horikita answered.

"I need to study too, my grades are below average at the moment." He escaped her smoothly.

Hirata gazed across the class as if scanning for any potential candidates to tail. I did the same until my eyes fell on Yamauchi.

"I remember Yamauchi-kun is short on points since he spent all his points last month. I think we should ask him to do it in exchange for points." I proposed.

"He is already academically weak, taking time out of his schedule would hamper his progress by leaps and bounds since Kushida-san holds the study session at the same time."

Hirata was right, but I have a good idea to what extent he might go for some points.

"I will ask him to join your study group which you hold in the evening. I am sure he would agree if we offer him three to four thousand points."

Everyone went deep in thought for a moment, I was not sure myself if it would work or not or even if tailing Sudou was worth those points.

"How do you plan on keeping a track if Yamauchi-kun is tailing him constantly or not?"

I did not have an answer to Horikita-san's question.

"You can see the location of numbers which are registered on your phone." Ayanokouji-kun was the one to speak up this time.

"That will work out we will randomly check his location at different times and if he does not happen to be on tail, then we will award half the amount promised."

That was a nice way to keep Yamauchi-kun in check. Horikita-san offered an excellent suggestion.

Chabashira-sensei entered the class and began the lecture. Once it was lunch break we explained the plan to Yamauchi-kun.

Chapter- 8

"If you guys offer 5,000 points for the next 10 days, then I am ready to do it." Yamauchi was feeling giddy from inside.

"We will randomly check your and Sudou-kun's location, if you do not happen to be on tail then we will deduct half of the points." Horikita got Yamauchi out of dreams and explained the conditions.

"Leave everything to me, do not worry Horikita-san." he did not sound much reliable, we looked at each other as if to confirm if it was a good idea. Eventually all eyes were on me since I nominated Yamauchi.

"Yamauchi-kun do not get caught by Sudou at any cost." I warned him.

"Have faith in me Ichinose-san, in my school days they used to call me 'Yama the silent wind'.

The credibility of his words just kept decreasing, but at the moment no one else can invest so much time on a task like tailing Sudou.

Chabashira-sensei returned to the class and classes went by. I don't have any idea where we are going with this, just keeping Sudou in check won't guarantee his cooperation in future. For the class to truly excel unity is paramount.

I still remember the face of the shoplifter girl, I will soon need to come to a conclusion about that too. After classes were over I returned to the dorms as usual with my friends.

Three days passed by peacefully, every morning Hirata-kun reported the progress he and Kushida-san made,Yamauchi-kun was tailing Sudou in the designated time period, and Horikita-san scouted around the school for more information. Ayanokouji-kun was probably studying harder to improve his grades, but till now I have not encountered any doubts from his side. Perhaps he is shy, I will ask him again if he needs some help.

"Ichinose-san lets walk to dorms together." Shinohara-san invited me.

"Ah I am sorry Shinohara-san I need to buy something from a convenience store." feels like De ja Vu.

"Oh okay, see you tomorrow Ichinose-san."

We parted our ways, I walked towards the convenience store in the scorching sun; it is nearly 3 in the afternoon yet the heat is growing unbearable.I guess this is how summer works, once out of rooms it feels like inside an oven.

Once I reached the store it was a great relief from the heat, I started walking towards the drinks section again to get the tea packets I was not able to buy last time due to the sudden turn of events.

I glanced over the set of beer cans once again, the one missing can was replaced already. As I walked towards the tea section a familiar figure caught my eyes.

"I did not know you were interested in Barley tea, Ayanokouji-kun." oops I forgot to greet him.

"Yeah I recently took a liking to it, what about you Ichinose-san, you here to buy tea as well?" Although he asked about me, his indifferent tone had me confused if he genuinely wanted to know or he was just being kind to ask me back.

"Yes, I am here to buy green tea. I came across them after I entered here, although it does not taste that good but it keeps me healthy."

"That is a nice choice Ichinose-san."

After making our purchase we walked towards the dormitory together. The heat was catching on again, I took out some water from my bag and drank a little.

"Ayanokouji-kun would you like to drink some water?"

"No, thanks Ichinose-san I don't need water at the moment." he turned me down politely.

"By the way Ayanokouji-kun how are your studies going? You never came up with any doubts." I questioned him like some teacher, I hope he does not hate me for prying into his studies. But I must make sure of it or else it might be too late if he is just shy.

" I am just checking them on the internet at the moment, although I do need your help in some parts."

Aha! He was shy afterall, I will do my best to help him improve his grades.

"Sure Ayanokouji-kun feel free to ask me anytime."

Wait, given that I am with my friends most of the time, it will be hard for him to approach me at this rate. I guess I will just approach him whenever I find him studying alone.

Before I knew we reached the dormitories, it was time to part our ways.

"See you in school tomorrow, Ayanokouji-kun."

"Yeah sure, Ichinose."

I went to my floor and just before opening my door, it hit me to check the location of Yamauchi-kun. I took out my phone and checked their location, they were still in school near the basketball club.

As I inserted the key in the lock, I reflected on how peaceful things are going nowadays. If we keep improving at this rate then we will fortify our defenses in no time.

I wonder how my family is doing on their own without me. The next time we meet again I will make sure to become a splendid person on whom others can rely on.

I spent the rest of my time studying and talking with some of my friends.

Next day, like always, I reached school early, things went as usual until Chabashira-sensei entered the class.

"Basketball club members of class C have filed a complaint with the school against Sudou. They claim that after practice, Sudoku attacked and injured them with no apparent provocation." She said without any hint of emotion in her voice.

The class went into and disarray, how did this happen? Wasn't Yamauchi-kun tailing Sudou to avoid thighs like these or at least report us?

"It was self-defense! Self-defense!" Sudoku exclaimed to prove his innocence.

But given his personality even his own classmates eyed him with suspicion. I looked at Yamauchi-kun who looked a little pale and was avoiding eye contact with any of us.

"They were jealous because I became a regular, so they picked a fight!"

"There is no evidence of that." Chabashira-sensei shot down Sudou with her cold words and continued.

"Thought, if there was a witness, it might be a different story."

Everyone looked at each other while I looked at Yamauchi-kun who was not moving a muscle, did he fail at tailing him? Or did they have a fight out of the time period we assigned Yamauchi-kun to tail Sudou.

"Everyone!" I was the one to break the silence.

"Did anyone happen to see Sudou-kun's fight? Does anyone know anything about it ?"

Silence filled the classroom as everyone looked at each other and ultimately all eyes fell on Sudou, this is not good. Suspecting a classmate will just make things worse.

I looked at Chabashira-sensei who seemed to have a slightly disappointed face.

"Your presence is hardly beautiful, Red hair-kun. Simmer down."

The last blow to the fragile patience of Sudou was delivered by none other than Kouenji-kun. He said everything without even looking out of his mirror.

Sudoku-kun stood up from his seat out for Koenji's blood, Hirata-kun tried to stop him which hardly seemed to work.

"In one week time, there will be a discussion with class C with the student council in attendance. Depending on how it turns out, there may be a forfeiture of points as well as disciplinary measures for Sudou."

The gazes filled with distaste turned towards Sudou, he sat back to his silently, completely giving up the idea of attacking Kouenji.

I don't understand what I should do, any more loss of points and the class will collapse completely and not only that, Sudou will also end up losing his chance in Basketball club as well.

If by any miracle we do find a witness even then there is no guarantee Sudou and our class will get unscathed out of it once the matter reaches the student council. Things will get even worse if the witness happens to be from a different class. If it was a part of Ryuuen Kakeru's plan then this is a clear checkmate, but I still cannot understand what happened to our pre-initiative of appointing Yamauchi. Just if I knew that there was such a danger waiting then I could have tailed Sudou myself however wrong it may have been, due to some careless moves our class is now going to suffer such fate.

As Chabashira-sensei taught I was not able to pay attention to it even for a minute. Once in middle of the class my restless eyes met Hirata's gaze, from one look I can say that he was also having some internal struggle deep within him. We averted our eyes and patiently waited for class to end.

Once sensei left the class, by the time I stood up Kushida-san started.

"Everyone let us stay calm at the moment we must have faith in our classmates and try our best to find the witness. Please everyone ask the other classes if they have witnessed any fight of the kind sensei just mentioned."

While everyone considered Kushida-san's words carefully, Horikita silently marched to Yamauchi's seat. I and Hirata decided to do the same, naturally we had our questions for him.

"So Yamauchi-kun mind giving us the details of yesterday?" Horikita inquired.

"Don't ask me how, I was not able to witness the fight but somehow I have the voice recording of the whole fight."

What ?!!

Chapter- 9

What ?!!

Pure confusion ran through my head, but somewhere among those emotions there was relief. Just as I was about to exclaim Hirata-kun stopped me from speaking.

"We will talk about this with less company," he whispered.

Horikita-san was scanning the class to see if anyone heard us, I didn't know why we were hiding it but I did the same and my eyes started moving through the class to see if anyone heard Yamauchi.

My eyes met with Kushida-san's for a moment, there was no slyness in her eyes, they were pleading from deep of her heart to save us from this calamity. Something deep within me resonated with her plea, I just wanted to tell her everything will be okay, although I was not sure that would be the case regardless of the evidence.

We left Yamauchi's seat without exchanging any words, I observed Ayanokouji-kun was missing among us. On searching I spotted him at his seat, sitting unfazed from all this. Or was he tensed as well but did not show it? In any case there was still hope left as long as Yamauchi had the voice recording but if the words did not sound convincing we will be at a deadlock again.

During the lunch most of the students left the class, probably in search of any possible witnesses. It looked like Hirata was also about to leave with a group of girls, being dragged into search was unavoidable given that he was a leading figure in the class. Same was the case with me, I had not done anything significant yet but I must lead the class out of this turmoil. I cannot see everyone suffering anymore.

Although I had these thoughts I cannot tell them about the recording Yamauchi brought to the table, I assume Hirata stopped the news from spreading because it would cause even bigger disarray in class if the audio does not turn out to be useful. That would put Yamauchi in a bad spot as well.

Outside the class I met the groups of Kushida-san and Hirata-kun, they seemed to be discussing something.

"What are you guys planning?" I asked them.

"I plan on going to class A and Kushida-san will search in class C, in view of the fact that she has more friends in class C than me."

"That is a sound plan, but Kushida-san given that class C was the one to make complaint searching there might prove useless."

"We need to check every corner for witnesses right Ichinose-san?" She replied politely as ever.

The gate slid open behind us, Horikita-san who was accompanied by Ayanokouji-kun was heading out.

"Where are you two planning to search?"

I asked them that, although I doubted Horikita-san would search anymore after hearing about the recording.

"We are heading to the site where the fight took place." Ayanokouji-kun replied.

"That is a good idea."

Ayanokouji nodded and followed Horikita-san. I turned back to Hirata-kun and Kushida-san.

"If you guys are searching for those classes then I will head to class B for search."

Kushida-san and Hirata-kun nodded in synchronicity, now that I think about it I might understand what Hirata-kun is thinking. If all of our class members are out for search then it will look like the plan of Ryuuen worked out. If by any chance the audio comes in to be handy then we can catch them off guard, and if it does not prove to be useful evidence we can still search for more evidence without fueling more chaos.

Hirata-kun and Horikita-san surely are amazing if they were able to tailor this plan at the same time with such speed, or maybe they were just trying to avoid the unknown at the moment and came across its usefulness with time.

In the corridor opposite to the gate of class B there were two boys standing, I knew one of them. He was supposedly the unspoken leader of class B, I heard a lot about him whenever any news of class B reached me.

"Good afternoon." I greeted him.

"Good afternoon, I am Ryuji Kanzaki."

"I am Ichinose Honami. It is nice to meet you Kanzaki-kun. I am here to inquire about the incident regarding Sudou of Basketball club."

"Oh, perhaps you are searching for some witnesses who might prove innocent of your classmate."

"Yes you are right, we are in a tough spot."

"Even then I don't sense genuine distress or unease from you."

He is sharper than I thought, since I knew about the audio recording Yamauchi talked about I have been feeling relieved.

"Guess we still have high hopes of finding a witness." I tried to dodge.

"Ichinose-san I will cut to the chase, even if we do have a witness we won't be helping you guys." Kanzaki's shot words like arrows.

"Why would you say that? We are ready to offer you points."

"I remember you guys received zero points last month, even if all of you decided to give us some points it won't be worth a final blow to your class. You never know when a one sided competition might grow into a cut throat survival."

He had a point, given that class B had 900 points in the beginning of the month by any means they won't be in need of points. Rather they would focus more on chasing class A.

"But that would also mean we might be able to help you guys in the future." I tried to convince him.

"I might have considered your words but at the state your class is at the moment, you are hardly eligible to promise any help in future."

Appears so that he does not have any intention to help us.

"I see, if that is the case then there is no point in further discussion here."

"Agreed."

With those words we left, I can't exactly condemn his way of thinking. But I am sure our class will rise out of this turmoil stronger than before.

"You tried your best, Ichinose-san. He had no intention of helping us from the beginning." Shinohara tried to console me.

"Guess you are right, I hope things go well with others."

With that we entered class and lunch break ended, students randomly glared at Sudou.

Once the school ended Horikita-san was the first one to leave. I texted her to wait for me in front of school gates. It showed read but I did not get any reply.

"Ichinose-san would you like to walk to dorms with us?" Shinohara-san invited me again.

"I am sorry Shinohara-san I think I will search a little more for any witnesses."

"Oh okay see you tomorrow then Ichinose-san."

"Sure, bye-bye."

I turned towards Yamuchi, who was with Ike-kun, as I walked towards them Hirata-kun reached there before me.

"Yamauchi-kun, would you mind coming with me for a bit?"

Yamauchi-kun understood why Hirata-kun wanted that so he readily agreed.

"Sure, why not. Ike, let's meet tomorrow man. I got some personal business with Hirata."

Ike eyed them suspiciously, as if trying to figure something out but soon gave up.

"Okay bye guys see you tomorrow, Ichinose-san would you want to walk till dorms with me?"

"I am sorry Ike-kun but I also have some business to take care of."

"Aww, guess we will head together some other day."

"Sure, see you tomorrow then."

Once Ike left only three of us remained in the class.

"Let us not talk here, someone might hear us." I warned them.

"I agree, where should we head out to? I think we meet up with Horikita-san and Ayanokouji-kun."

"Horikita-san is probably waiting at the school gates for us."

"We can talk in Ayanokouji's room, he does not go out much so we will find him and a meeting point at once." Yamauchi-kun surely was fast to turn to Ayanokouji's room.

"Will he be okay if we suddenly barge into his room?" Hirata showed his concerns.

"We do that all the time, no need to worry."

"Very well let's not keep Horikita-san waiting."

"Hirata-kun, you head to Ayanokouji's room with Yamauchi-kun, I will head there withHorikita-san. If all of us move together it will gather too much attention."

"That is right, I will do so Ichinose-san."

I rushed to the school gates as fast I could, soon Horikita-san came into my vision. So she was waiting after all.

"Hah ... Hah Horikita-san lets.. . . go to Ayanokoji-kun's room . . .. .

Hirata-kun and Yamauchi-kun will be there."

"I see, lets go."

Without any regard to my fatigue she started walking, I followed her with heavy legs. Looks like I am getting out of shape, but I ran at my top speed for a minute. It is bound to tire me out.

Soon we arrived at Ayanokouji-kun's room, it is my second time here now. Last time it did not go well, Kushida-san is always so polite I sometimes forget the fact that she hates me.

Ding Dong*

With a slight delay Ayanokouji-kun opened up. He was still in his school uniform, guess he was taking some rest before getting changed.

"Sorry to barge in suddenly Ayanokouji-kun but this is regarding the recording Yamauchi-kun has in favour of Sudou. He will be here any moment with Hirata-kun."

"I see, please come in."

His reply lacked enthusiasm, but what else can I expect if someone barges into one's room while they are taking rest.

After entering as I turned to close the door, Hirata-kun showed up with Yamauchi-kun.

"Ah welcome Hirata-san, make yourself home."

He smiled at me but for some reason it was awkward. I just realized that it was not my room.

"Will you guys have something to drink?"

"Water."

"No, thanks."

"Chocolate milkshake."

"No, thanks for asking Ayanokouji-kun."

He went to the kitchen and got some water for me.

"I am sorry, but I don't have chocolate milkshake with me Yamauchi, would you like to have some barley tea?"

"No no I will pass on that."

Everyone sat on the floor, I drank water in haste but suddenly I felt a sneeze on its way. Damn, not now of all times, at this rate I will throw up all the water in my mouth on them.

Chapter- 10

There was no helping to it, I swiftly turned away from them and created the mess that I predicted to create. Water came out from my nose and mouth, small tears swelled up in my eyes.

Ayanokouji-kun and Hirata-kun rushed to me, why did something so embarrassing happen in front of everyone?

"Here take the towel." Hirata offered.

"No, I will make it dirty." I answered with my voice full of embarrassment.

"Don't worry I don't mind."

"Thank you, Ayanokouji-kun."

I swiped my face with the towel and took some deep breaths.

Yamauchi let out a giggle but I heard a painful groan follow it. Probably Horikita-san took care of him. Since there was no sound of hitting I can only imagine what method she used on him.

Once everything was settled we sat back on the floor.

"So Yamauchi-kun, play the audio recording you mentioned this morning." Horikita-san ordered him.

He played the recording, everyone heard it patiently. It was apparent that Sudou was provoked by others, sounds of punches and random hits came out of the cell phone. Once the fight ended, it appeared like Sudou had beaten them all, which meant that the recording might be able to prove his self-defense but it is hardly enough to justify the damage he caused to the boys.

"We will get him with this, it all went as Ryuuen-san said."

"You are right I am sure there were no witnesses, we took care of the guy who was tailing Sudou."

"Let's report to sir now."

After that a bunch of footsteps were heard, once all sounds were cleared, someone walked towards the cell and the recording ended.

A current of relief ran through the tense atmosphere, this much evidence was enough to prove that it was a planned provocation by class B. The only one whose expression was not relieved was Yamauchi-kun.

Indeed one of the guys mentioned that they took care of Yamauchi-kun. Did they beat them up? We still do have the question as to why Yamauchi-kun was not able to stand as a witness when the search was on.

"So, Yamauchi-kun you say you were not able to witness the incident. Then how did you get the audio recorded, that too in such quality?"

Before processing the given info, Hirata decided to question Yamauchi-kun. That should be done for getting the whole idea of the situation.

"Don't ask me how but somehow I lost Sudou when I entered the special building, I was roaming there my phone dropped off so I was

not able to see Sudou's location. When I found my cell after sometime I had this recording in it."

Questions flooded through my head, many details were simply missing and even with details this is too lucky to find the cell with recording.

"Give us more details." Horikita-san ordered him.

"N-No , I will hand this recording only on the condition that you don't ask me for any more details."

"Why would you say so, Yamauchi-kun? When the class comes to know you had this much evidence you will be the hero of the day and everyone might give you many points they receive next month"

I tried to motivate him. For a second he considered it then shook his head.

"No! My conditions are set."

Why does he not want to be seen as a witness? There are many questions but above all stands the question of what is the reason so significant Yamauchi-kun was not letting any of the details out.

"Very well, you have the evidence you have the right to set the conditions." Horikita-san understood the situation well.

"How do you all plan on using this evidence?"

Ayanokouji-kun who was only listening until now spoke up.

"It clearly mentions that Ryuuen-kun was the one that set up all of this, we just need to play this to prove Sudou-kun's innocence."

"He did beat up all of them, even for self defense he will be penalized for his actions. But given that it might be worth it to deliver severe damage to class C for filing a complaint based on lies."

She had a point, we can deal considerable damage to Ryuuen-kun, but if Sudou also receives it then his reputation in Basketball-club might worsen.

"I think we should avoid any more damage to Sudou than what has already been done, the Basketball club is considering him for the tournament, they might change their decision based on the way things go from now. He might bring us some more class points if we don't let this reach the student council."

I brought my suggestion to the table, although I don't have any idea how we will make it happen.

"What you say is sensible but how do you plan on doing so, Ichinose-san?"

Ouch!

"I do not have any idea at the present moment."

I said looking straight into her eyes.

"It will be easy if we just send this to Ryuuen, there is no way he can fight out of this." Yamauchi-kun suggested.

"I won't risk it. He has already surprised us once, if we give him time to prepare he might come up with some counter strategy."

Hirata was right, none of us can predict the way he will react to this. Best choice would be to not give time for him to react. The suggestion Yamauchi-kun offered was simply too risky.

"I have a plan. But I do not intend to help Sudou right away, if he gets away from this without receiving punishment then these things are bound to knock on our doors again."

"Yes, things will get out of hand sooner or later." I agreed.

"I will take care of domesticating him with this evidence, now hear out my plan."

Horikita-san clearly was sounding ominous, even though I did not like the sound of it, I focused more on her plan since it held more importance at the moment.

"I will need your help Ichinose-san."

I nodded and she continued to narrate her plan, it had a good chance of working if the given subjects were not as fast as Ryuuen at processing information.

"Okay, we go with that."

Hirata said with eyes filled with hope, it was probably the first time I saw him smiling all day.

The door suddenly opened up, grabbing our attention was Kushida-san was the one to enter. Followed by Ike-kun and Sudou-kun. Both parties were just as surprised to see each other.

"I am sorry we will leave immediately, looks like we barged in at the wrong time."

Kushida-san turned back to leave, but Hirata-kun stopped her.

"Please wait, Kushida-san we were talking about you only, we need your help with something."

"Oh I see, shall I call in Ike-kun and Sudou-kun too?"

There was not any need to do that, looks like she was surprised to the extent that she did not notice Sudou and Ike who already had entered the room and were lying on the bed.

"No need Kushida-san! We took the liberty to do so."

Kushida-san who was probably at loss of words walked inside and sat with us, she glanced at me for a moment then averted her eyes.

"So what help did you need Hira-"

"Before that Kushida-san I have something to tell you." Horikita-san interrupted her.

"Oh."

"At the rate things are going, Sudou-kun is going to lose his candidacy in the upcoming tournament. And not to mention the hatred he will receive from the students for getting the class points deducted."

Horikita-san began the verbal beatdown of Sudou which she planned.

Everyone was hit again on the open wound they forgot about, Sudou was the first one to react.

"What do you mean?! Stop kidding me, we are searching for some witnesses. I know we will get out of this."

"Class B have declined to provide any information on their part regarding the incident."

My heart felt broken, but I fueled the fire Horikita-san was using to burn Sudou.

"What?!''

His expression changed into a hopeless one when he saw I was not supporting him either. I remember that expression, I felt sorry for him but it might not be possible to domesticate him using clean methods. Hirata-kun beside me understood that too but it looked like he was fighting a more intense internal struggle than any of us.

"Not only that, we cannot expect any support from class C since they were the ones to file the complaint in the first place."

Horikita continued without any hints of hesitation, as Sudou remained silent.

"Do you understand why you were the one they chose to attack?"

"Because I was excelling in the club faster than anyone else, they were jealous of me."

"That is only half of the reason Sudou, you missed to point out your own short temper. They chose you because you were the one easiest to provoke and also most ignorant of your surroundings."

Sudou opened his mouth to say something but decided to close it back, as Horikita continued her verbal beatdown he lost his will to fight back.

"As an individual the focus you exhibit in academics shows that you run away from the battles once it gets harder. Sooner or later you will do the same with Basketball."

"No way! I would never back down in Basketball whatever happens."

There was sincerity in his voice, although his voice grew hopeless and weak he did not back down when it came to Basketball.

"You do understand that the club will not consider you for next tournament because of your short temper."

Realization dawned on him, probably it was apparent to him before but when someone spoke it out for him, it hit him harder. It was the last blow to his pride.

"I will be careful from now on. I just want to get out of this, please help me you guys."

Horikita-san did have talent for this, even when he does not know that Horikita-san can help him, he is still pleading to her.

"What is the guarantee that you will be true to your words?"

"Horikita-san do you have anyway to help Sudou?"

Kushida-san was the one to point out that the way Horikita-san talked did not only sound like she was ridiculing Sudou but also had a hint that she can help him.

"Yes, you are right Kushida-san. We all have found useful evidence but at the moment it belongs to me."

Sudou's face lit up, like a small child.

"I do not plan on helping him, because if he does not receive any punishment then sooner or later the events will repeat himself."

"Stop kidding me!"

Sudou stood up to grab Horikita.

"Are you going to resort to violence again? This short temper is the only reason you are in the situation you are in."

He stopped in his tracks and swallowed his anger as he stood still for a moment. Like an animal shot with bolts.

"Horikita please help me, I will try to improve."

Sudou changed. There was something that I was not able to see in the cold words Horikita spoke, but seems like Sudou did change. This growth in his personality would not make any significant difference in the situation he is in or the ones to come in future. But what this does offer is a ray of hope that he might undergo more changes and create more favourable situations than these in the coming future.

"Helping you is meritless if you do not improve, I will prove you innocent this time around but you should re-evaluate yourself as a person not about this incident."

"I will do so."

"Ichinose-san we proceed as planned tomorrow."

I nodded.

"Okay let's meet tomorrow, we have already caused Ayanokouji-kun a lot of trouble."

Hirata as always was considerate of everyone.

"No, I don't mind it."

"Let's meet in school tomorrow."

With that we all left.

Chapter- 11

Next day after school Kushida-san lured the three guys who filed the complaint to the special building.

I and Ayanokouji-kun were the ones to act up, the idea was to make them fear expulsion for filing false complaints. The heat here was unbearable which is supposed to work in our favour.

Eventually footsteps were audible, I looked at Ayanokouji who nodded at me. We took our positions.

Plan worked out as we expected, once the name of Ryuuen Kakeru was mentioned in the recording Ishizaki and company immediately tried to contact him. Which of course was not allowed by me, I did not practise this but my words seemed well tailored to them since they were not able to analyze the situation calmly.

Panic caused by sudden blow made them short sighted which eventually invited failure. We were successful in making them withdraw the complaint.

"Don't try anything like that again, Ishizaki-kun."

They all left without saying anything, frustration was clearly visible on their beat up faces.

We walked down to the halls and then out of the building, the heat was still unbearable.

"Want to grab a drink, Ayanokouji-kun?"

"Yeah sure, I am thirsty."

On our way to dormitories we stopped at the vending machine, he took a can and sat on the bench nearby. After taking my drink I joined him.

"So, Ayanokouji-kun, how do you think Yamauchi-kun got this recording?"

"I am still trying to figure that out, he says he found his phone lying with the recording in it. Guess it was good luck after all."

"That is too hard to believe, I think he is hiding some other details from us. Like you I can't put my finger on it either."

"I will check if he says anything about it when he is with Ike and Sudou."

"Oh yeah, you surely do have some lively friends."

"Indeed."

He answered with an apathetic expression. I guess he does not enjoy their company much.

"What about you, Ichinose? Who are the people whose company you enjoy the most?"

"I think I enjoy time with all my friends, we go through good times and bad times together like today. I know everyone will be happy in class tomorrow when Sensei announces the withdrawal of complaint. I can't wait to see everyone happy again."

"I see.''

I looked at the school building we just left, we will have good and bad memories related to it. We will be nurtured into contributing members of societies by it.

"It is time, let's go Ayanokouji-kun."

He nodded at me and we started walking towards the dorms. Eventually after some small talk we parted our ways to respective rooms. I texted Horikita-san and Hirata-kun that our plan was executed successfully.

Next day I reached the class earlier than everyone out of habit, one after another student entered the class and greeted me. They all were still worried about the dangers hovering over the class.

At last sensei entered the class, after reaching the podium she silently scanned the whole class with her piercing gaze. Her eyes met mine but she kept searching until she zeroed upon Sudou.

"Class C has withdrawn the complaint against Sudou-kun." Chabashira-sensei chuckled as she spoke. She wore a thin smile, as if she found something amusing.

A current of relief ran through the students. I looked at people one by one, Shinohara-san, Mei-chan, Satou-san everyone looked so relieved the class was lively again.

"I am glad your innocence was proved, but I personally do not think you should have been left unpunished." Chabashira-sensei added. Her words condemned Sudou who was still celebrating his victory.

"The reason this incident occurred at all is because of your behaviour. The matter of which party lied is trivial. It is important that you reflect on yourself and don't let this kind of thing repeat again. You do understand, Yes?"

"Yeah .."

"However, admitting that your personality was not at fault here might help you look tough, but if you keep this up you will never make real friends. Eventually, the ones who helped you this time will abandon you too."

She reminds me of Horikita, cold words shot out like bullets yet all of them are true, Sudou must learn this and I am glad it would be sooner rather than later.

"I understand.. If I hadn't been so short tempered this wouldn't have been such a big deal. I knew that somewhere."

When this first came up, he was blaming the Class C to be jealous of his progress, and had continued to say only that.

"In the past I fought all I wanted for my own satisfaction. But it is not like that anymore... I am a Class D student, and my personal actions affect the entire class. Now I have experienced it firsthand..."

I unconsciously smiled, to think that Sudou of all people would talk about responsibilities and effects of his actions on others. He might not have become perfect but he has certainly progressed his personality.

"I will try my best to avoid causing any further problems."

"Don't make promises you cannot keep."

"Tch."

"Sit down, now Horikita and Ichinose meet me after class."

"Okay sensei."

The center of attention suddenly shifted to us, there was a moment of confusion for me but I did not hesitate to answer. Sensei probably wants to know what happened behind the scenes.

I looked at Horikita-san who nodded slowly.

"Sensei can we know the reason why they withdrew the complaint?" Hirata asked although he knew well why it happened. Indeed a smart move to test how much information a sensei receives.

"They withdrew saying that it was perhaps a waste of time for both parties. They proceeded to admit filing the complaint as a mistake and took responsibility by paying the necessary points one needs to pay for gaining the audience of student council even when meeting was not held"

A thin smile appeared on her face, she probably was amused by the lies she saw through clearly.

Ike sat down on his seat and she waited in silence to see if there were any other questions to be answered. There were not many questions since I, Kushida, Hirata, Horikita and Ayanokouji already knew what was going on so we did not raise many questions.

"If there are no further questions then I will begin class."

Once the class ended she looked at me and then at Horikita, as if checking that we remember the appointment she made.

I stood up from my seat and got out of the class followed by Horikita, I caught a glimpse of sensei moving upstairs. We followed her in silence till we reached the rooftop where she took out a cigarette and started smoking.

How can she have such beautiful skin even when she smokes, probably she does not do it frequently. I looked at Horikita who was standing behind me, her long hair flowing due to the wind.

"What do you want? You called me here to talk, so talk." Horikita-san was the one to break silence, although not in a very polite way.

"I will get straight to the point, How did you do it?" Chabashira-sensei came clear.

"What are you talking about sensei?" I tried to dodge her question by throwing a question back at her. Oh wait, I unconsciously answered instead of Horikita. ~Oops~

Chabashira-sensei blew out some smoke and took a deep breath.

"Don't play dumb." Ichinose, we all know that those imbeciles won't withdraw their complaint for no reason." Sensei probably did have more ideas for things than she revealed in class.

"I will leave that to your imagination." Unlike me, Horikita-san blatantly avoided the question.

"Let me rephrase the question, who was the one to come up with the brilliant idea? What made them back off?"

"I do not understand why does that even matter to you? But I will at least tell you that it was the result of a pre-initiative taken by the aware individuals of the class."

"Interesting, tell me more about it. I assume you were among those individuals, Ichinose."

"Yes, sensei Horikita-san was the one to report a fight between Sudou and Ryuuen, Hirata-kun was the one to propose the idea to tail Sudou.

I was the one to recruit Yamauchi-kun to tail Sudou in exchange for points."

I recited all the events in order, revealing our methods to her would not pose any threat to us in any possible way. In fact she might teach us some better way to handle this.

"I see that is brilliant teamwork Ichinose, I did not expect Horikita to be so cooperative."

"I was not cooperating with them. Since the entrance ceremony was cancelled I needed to understand how the clubs worked, discovering Sudou fighting with Ryuuen was sheer coincidence.I only helped Sudou because after reading the benefit sports clubs offer I came to the conclusion that we might need him in future to reach Class A."

"You two do say interesting things, but if things went as planned then why did Yamauchi-kun not appear as a witness?"

That is a mystery even we do not understand at the moment. If I want I can say that we did not want anymore damage to come to Sudou, but the truth was that Yamauchi somehow had the recording even when he did not witness the event.

I looked at Horikita-san, trying to confirm if we were going to reveal the truth to sensei or not. She gave me a slight nod, as if asking to proceed with caution.

"Yamauchi-kun somehow had the audio recording of the incident, but he says he was not able to witness it."

"And how does he explain this?''

"He disagreed to share any details about that."

As if realisation dawned upon her Chabashira-sensei threw her cigarette and took a deep breath. Her eyes were lost as if admiring a piece of art.

"Do you have any idea what he might be hiding? Or what actually happened with him?"

We looked at sensei with curiosity filled eyes, waiting for her to teach us.

"I will leave that to your imagination."

... I was speechless. She used the same words used by Horikita when she asked for information.

"Although I will give you both a piece of advice, if you really want to reach Class A one day then learn about the student named Ayanokouji Kiyotaka as much as you can and as fast as you can. If you don't it might be too late."

Ayanokouji-kun? Why him? He looks quite average though, although he does have the ability to remain calm in tense situations but other than that he does not excel in academics or teamwork.

"Why him?" Horikita inquired with questioning eyes.

"Did you know that he got 50 points in all tests of the entrance exam? And the other day he got 50 points again in the quiz."

"And how does bringing exactly average marks make him exceptional?"

"I would not be answering that, you have my piece of advice act upon it according to your deductions."

Silence took over the conversation as I and Horikita went deep into thoughts. Ayanokouji surely was present there with us at many deciding events of this case, his contribution is by no means insignificant but it is not exceptional either. Just then it clicked to me, the unexplained piece of information where this advice stemmed from.

Ryuuen's POV (Chapter 12)

(Author's note: This chapter is POV of Ryuuen Kakeru, the beginning is from the point Horikita interrupted his fight with Sudou.)

"Both sides, stop right there."

"The hell do you want?! Stay out of this!"

The monkey screeched as Ishizaki and others held him down.

"As a student of this school, I cannot allow violence to pass under my watch. If you insist on fighting regardless, I will call the security."

"Who might you be? Lost your way?"

When I turned around, a girl with long black hair and cold eyes came into my vision.

"Sudou-kun get out of here right now. Don't waste your time getting bullied by someone."

Interesting. She completely ignored my question, she looks like a good plaything.

"This is not a fight, we are the victims here."

"Are you sure? It looked to me like you goaded him into it, Ryuuen. If you keep this up I will report this to the school."

"It is a common courtesy to offer your own name before using that of others."

"I do not intend to do so."

Kukuku, just the ill manners a woman should have in her. She and this monkey will offer me decent entertainment.

"You will make a nice plaything, I look forward to our next meeting."

I started walking away from the circus, the others followed me like the obedient pets they are. Once we were out of their earshot I started inquiring about the ape.

"Ishizaki, you say that the monkey is the only fresher who is nominated for the tournament."

"Yes, Ryuuen-san."

Very well, time to change that fact. I explained to Ishizaki and others the plan to lure the chimp into our trap. Looking at their faces, they understand full well how to proceed with this.

"But why do we wait for 3 days before we call him into the special building?"

Ishizaki is just as dumb as he looks, if he did not had the loyalty and aggression he does he would be the fool who becomes a liability if used as a tool.

"You provoke him randomly for those 3 days, I will take care of perfection by then."

The two others scratched their heads in confusion, they probably cannot predict the possible countermeasure Class D might take for the unleashed dog.

"Sure we will do so, Ryuuen-san."

After that I used to keep an eye on the monkey during random strolls arounds the school. There was another monkey that followed him during his club activities.

Probably the girl with black hair reported Class D about me targeting Sudou, but it was quite careless of them to install such a useless student for the job. From time to time whenever a chick would pass by near him, he would ogle them with dreamy eyes.

"Kukuku, Horny mutt."

I will need to get him oh the tail, so that there is no inconvenience after filing the complaint. Hmm . . . While formulating a counter I strolled around the clubs until my eyes caught Kinoshita.

Hehe, Kinoshita will do the job of taking care of the horny mutt. I casually took Kinoshita out of her club and showed her the face of her target, she was reluctant at the start but she complied soon enough.

That takes care of things, now I just need to wait and watch. In two days the plan will be executed, I expect these pieces to dance the way I told them to.

All of them reported their progress to me everyday, Ishizaki and all regularly poked the monkey while Kinoshita was entertaining the horny mutt so he would not notice them.

The day came when they will enter the special building for the fight. I went straight to karaoke where we are supposed to meet. After I sometime as expected Ishizaki with mild injuries entered the room.

"Albert."

He understood my command at once and punched Ishizaki into a pulp.

"Now you look like a real victim."

"Yes, sir."

As I poured the whole glass over Ishizaki, Kinoshita arrived as expected.

"Ryuuen-san I have done things as you asked me to do, Yamauchi was with me on the 4th floor all the time. Just to be sure I checked that he had his cell with him and had not contacted anyone during that time period."

"You did well Kinoshita, now you can leave."

She looked at me with hope, probably she wanted me to praise her more or something for reward, but I don't plan on doing any of those.

"Now go straight to the student council and file a complaint against the chimp."

I ordered Ishizaki, who barely got up and walked out of the door with the other three. The Class D apes will be throwing a fit by tomorrow when they come to know of the damage they will receive.

I can already hear victory knocking at the door. I laid back on the sofa as the room changed its color under the influence of party lights.

"Ah I can never get enough of this feeling."

The next day as expected the whole Class D was on hunt for a witness, but not so surprisingly they did not find any. Kushida came to our door accompanied by losers. We returned them from the very doorstep, no point entering the enemy territory to search for the witness. I wonder who is leading them, probably Hirata or Ichinose. Probably one of those two put the Yamauchi guy to keep an eye on Sudou after the black haired girl reported to them.

Smart move I would say, but it was unfortunate for them that they went up against me. Such lax and careless moves need to be awarded accordingly.

The next day things went smoother, the apes had visible despair on their faces. According to what the lowlifes reported to me, Kanzaki did not offer any info from his class either. Kukuku.

I returned to the dorms directly from school that day, I had nothing in particular left to do in school and taking a stroll in this unbearable heat was not an option.

I reached my room soon, it was peaceful in my room, not that I liked it but still having some time alone is refreshing sometimes.

Once I was done resting I drank some water and started my warmup for working out, putting my phone on silent to avoid any disturbance and started my workout.

As I trained my muscles I recalled all the fights I had in this school, and all those I had in my previous ones. Whenever I remember the decisive blow of a battle my heart beated faster.

After a long session I was done, when I checked my phone it had 7 missed calls from Ishizaki. Apparently I was not able to receive any of those because my phone was on silent.

I called him back to see what was the case.

"Ryuuen-san! We were compromised, please forgive us. There was no way to escape for us."

His voice words were messed up; none of his sentences made sense either.

"Make sense or I will beat the hell out of you again."

"I am sorry Ryuuen-san, but somehow the Class D had the audio recording of our fight with Sudou. They threatened us to withdraw the case or they would present the evidence in student council and get us expelled for drafting false accusations."

.. . . . . What? . .. .

"Why did you not contact me? You moron."

"I am sorry Ryuuen-san they did not give us a chance to do that. I contacted you the moment we got out of their sight."

"Give me their names."

"Ichinose Honami and some guy named Ayanokouji from Class D.''

Interesting, very interesting. To think that they predicted my counter already and set up someone else seems very unlikely given the level they are on. There were no security cameras or any audio recorder around the whole floor.

They surely are a piece of work, now they have piqued my interest.

Looks like the girl with black hairs had more fangs than she revealed.

"Very well, leave this be for now, you will receive your punishment soon."

"I understand, Ryuuen-san."

I cut the call and started racking my brain to find the missing piece in the case.

Ayanokouji's POV ( The missing piece - Chapter 13)

(Author's note: This is Ayanokouji Kiyotaka's POV, it begins from the point when he met Ichinose in the convenience store while buying tea.)

"See you in school tomorrow, Ayanokouji-kun."

"Yeah sure, Ichinose."

We departed at the elevator, things are peaceful nowadays. But the way Sudou is acting might soon become cause of his downfall, rather not only him, the whole class might face loss if he messes up with the school rules the way everyone from Class D did in the first month.

I walked through the corridors faster than usual, the heat had sped up my pace without me knowing it. On reaching the room, at last I got a break from the unbearable heat.

After cooling down I washed my face, thinking about different options of what I shall have for dinner tonight.Since I was not able to come to a conclusion I put the decision to a hold at the moment. I decided to pass time searching things up on the internet.

As I stared at my monitor, my phone vibrated. It showed a message by Ike in the group consisting of me, Sudou, Yamauchi and him. He invited us to hang out this weekend. Neither Sudou nor Yamauchi has seen the message, probably because Yamauchi was busy keeping an eye on Sudou who was busy with club activities.

I will check their locations just in case to see if Yamauchi is doing his job or not. When I looked over their location I discovered something unusual, both Sudou and Yamauchi separated by a certain distance were moving towards the special building away from all the clubs.

That building remains deserted most of the time and due to the intense heat it is unlikely anyone will be visiting it at this time of the day. So there was no point to visit it alone, unless there are people already present there who might not be registered on my phone.

In any case, I decided to go there and take a look at what was going on. I dressed up in my school uniform again and left for the schools, usually at this time I would stand out a lot in school clothes heading back to school, but due to the temperature no one would be out on the pathway leading to school.

On reaching there I decided to search for Yamauchi first, since he would have a better idea of why they both are in this building. Even when I was able to see his location it was hard to find afterall he can be at any floor of the building.

After searching the given location I moved to the second floor as there was no sign of Yamauchi being on the first. The voice of a girl was heard in the seemingly empty building, it was faint so I was not able to make out the words but I zeroed upon the source.

"Yamauchi-kun let us exchange numbers, I want to talk to you even after school."

"Y-Yeah sure why not."

Yamauchi who was accompanied by a girl had a grin on his face, looks like he is having a secret meeting with a secret someone. Although it is not my place to disturb him, that means that Sudou remains unchecked at the moment.

I started to search for Sudou, he must have reached the building before Yamauchi afterall Yamauchi was the one tailing and not the other way around.

As I turned my back on them and faced towards the stairs, I caught a glimpse of a foot. I moved towards the stairs in silence, three guys were ascending the stairs to the fourth floor. I did the same, on reaching there I hid behind the nearby wall. Sudou was already waiting for them there, things did not seem to be going in the right direction.

"So you actually showed up huh? I thought you would run away, ~scaredy cat~."

"What?!! Why have you called me here?!"

They were clearly provoking Sudou, perhaps it was their idea to have a fight and file a complaint afterwards against him, since there was supposed to be no witness.

I took out my phone and started an audio recording, making a video recording would be more sensible but getting spotted here might prove as a trouble afterwards.

In normal conditions audio would have been a little hard to get recorded at this range, but since this building is empty it lacks any background noises and above all both the parties were yelling at the top of their lungs.

Sudou overpowered them easily, rather it felt unnatural. Just as I suspected they were getting beaten on purpose. Once the fight ended Sudou walked down the stairs then out of the building peacefully like a casual day, the three fallen guys got up and left the same way.

I descended the stairs and turned off the recording, on checking the location I saw that Yamauchi was still here. I decided to wait on the third floor for the girl to leave and turned back to the third floor.

Once she was gone Yamauchi stood there with dreamy eyes, I wonder if this school truly takes in only elite candidates. Once I was sure that the girl had left the building I came out of hiding and went downstairs.

"Yamauchi."

He snapped out of his dream once he marked my presence.

"Ayanokouji?! From when have you been here?!"

"For a while now."

Blood drained from his face which was lost in dreams only some moments ago.

"H-How much did you hear?"

"None of it."

"Phew... Please don't tell anyone about Kinoshita, I think she likes me."

That might have been a fair conclusion in normal circumstances, but her timing was too perfect.

"There is something you missed, Sudou had a fight with three Class C boys on the third floor of this building while you were chatting with Kinoshita."

"What?!! Oh no, I completely forgot about tailing him!"

I really feel sorry for his braincells who are suffering tension and receiving relaxation in such a short span of time.

"Not only the points you were promised will be withdrawn but you will also lose your standing in the eyes of Ichinose and Horikita."

I tightened the rope of panic around him, he might offer some favours in future which might prove to be useful in future if I get him out of this predicament.

"Wha-"

He was no longer able to tailor a sentence, amidst such chaos his intellect was as good as a soggy biscuit.

"Please, help me Ayanokouji. You are the smart guy you must have a way out of this."

He was not able to utter a single word in his defence and yet he is singing alright to please me.

"Fortunately I happened to be there when the fight took place, I have an audio recording of it."

"Awesome! Please give it to me and don't tell anyone about what happened here. I don't want to lose my points."

Shameless? He is clearly on the powerless side of the deal and yet he does not let me put the conditions. I guess I will set my conditions anyways.

"I will keep the thing about you and Kinoshita a secret, but do not present this recording to anyone until I allow you to do so."

"Eh...? Okay nevermind I will do that, now send me the file."

I took out my phone and prepared the app to send the file, while the file was transferring I looked at Yamauchi again. He was as happy as a kid, I felt sorry for his brain cells again.

"Thanks a lot Ayanokouji! Ask me for any sort of favours you need in future which I can help with."

I would have liked to doubt that there would be anything that Yamauchi can help me with, but I was taught by a wise man that

'Every tool has a task and every task has a tool.'

"Very well but do remember to not get this recording out until you get the permission to do so by me, or else I will tell Ike about Kinoshita."

Yamauchi froze for a moment, probably imagining the chaos it will be once Ike knows the relation Yamauchi and Kinoshita has.

"Yes, that is a promise."

The next day at school as expected the school received a complaint by Class C students against Sudou. Even though sensei asked the students for any witnesses, Yamauchi did not move a muscle and sat in his seat frozen.

Hirata, Horikita and Ichinose randomly threw glances at him expecting him to come out as a witness but that did not happen.

Once the class ended they marched to him at once, it would really be a frightening scene to see your employers march to you when you mess up a job you were employed for. I watched the scene from my seat.

This was a good chance, I texted Yamauchi to bring the whole company after the school to my room so I can make sure my identity is not revealed by any chance when the recording comes into the light.

Their conversation was brief, probably they decided to discuss it in presence of selected students in order to avoid any possible chaos caused by the ambiguous credibility of the evidence.

Horikita returned to her seat, and looked at me.

"What do you have to say about this, Horikita?"

"I would naturally let him get suspended, but according to Ichinose we might face unforeseen problems in future and might as well lose class points. Since I want to reach Class A I will get him out of this, assuming he truly is innocent."

"Well said. But how do you plan on doing it?"

"We should search the site where all this happened, then go searching for students who might possibly have witnessed the incident."

"I agree, and I assume by 'we' you do not mean me and you."

"Yes you come with me, your body once grew on the food I provided."

Now that sounds wrong on motherly levels but I will ignore that, the food I ate that day surely is causing me more trouble than anything else in this school.

We began our futile searches, even on reaching the building no bright ideas popped up into her head. I wonder how I would have proceeded if I had not had the audio recording on our side.

We returned to the class empty handed just like others, the whole class was trying to prepare themselves for another month with probably zero points.

Once the school ended I went back to my room, probably Yamauchi would not have revealed the audio recording by now.

"Sorry to barge in suddenly Ayanokouji-kun but this is regarding the recording Yamauchi-kun has in favour of Sudou. He will be here any moment with Hirata-kun."

"I see, please come in."

As planned ahead of time Ichinose appeared at my door. Ichinose, who was accompanied by Horikita, seemed to be out of breath for some reason. Soon Hirata and Yamauchi joined us.

I offered Ichinose some water to drink, she suddenly turned around and threw all the water on the floor. I did not pass her the bottle of vinegar by mistake, did I?

Hirata offered her a towel but she seemed to be concerned about me.

"I don't mind using it freely."

In the background Horikita took care of Yamauchi who was having a hard time containing his giggles, she probably used the compass which was supposed to be mightier than a sword.

Once the whole recording played everyone started hounding Yamauchi for details. He was quick on his wits for dealing recording in exchange for avoiding any further questioning.

Horikita came up with the best possible plan which can be formulated using this evidence. It appeared so that she had plans of domesticating Sudou too. Unfortunately Sudou came into the room just after Horikita was ready for the kill.

She clearly succeeded in domesticating him with a little help by Ichinose who was clearly not enjoying it.

After that with help of Kushida, I and Ichinose successfully executed the plan Horikita had formulated. The complaint was withdrawn easily.

The next day Chabashira-sensei announced the same, she glanced towards me and Horikita from time to time the whole class.

Near the end of the class she asked Ichinose and Horikita to meet her once the class ended. I would not have been interested in it but before leaving Sensei gave me a questioning look, but her eyes looked as if acknowledging an artist.

At first I thought of following them to eavesdrop them, but then I was not willing to put in the effort to do that at the moment. I have a good idea what she might be trying to do.

Chapter- 14

(Author's note: This chapter is continuation of the conversation of Ichinose, Horikita and Chabashira at the rooftop which was left hanging in the end of chapter 11)

The pieces vaguely connected to a rough idea in my head.

"Sensei, by any chance are you trying to say that Ayanokouji-kun has something to do with the audio recording?"

Sensei's lips twisted to form a thin smile, I think my hunch was right at that point.

"That is nonsense, how can he be related to the audio."

"Horikita, do you know? Class D is full of defective students. Your own defect is holding you back from understanding many things that are going around your surroundings, in short they make you ignorant just on a different level than Sudou's."

Chabashira-sensei wounded Horikita with her harsh words.

"I would like it if you would enlighten me."

Horikita still remained unfazed by the words Sensei threw at her. She really has an unbreakable personality, but it is also preventing her from learning at the moment.

"I have given you my piece of advice, I would just like to add that among all the students of Class D Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is the most defective one."

That name came up again, I need to investigate his activities in the coming future. According to what sensei is hinting he might as well be the key to help us reach the Class A.

I will observe his actions from now on.

"Now you can leave."

We left the rooftop without saying another word,due to some reason I did not feel like thanking sensei for guiding us. We walked to the class in silence thinking hard.

When we reached the class doors a familiar figure was standing there, most probably waiting for our arrival.

"So which one of you got the audio recording of the event?"

Ryuuen Kakeru brought up the existence of the recording in broad daylight, that too in front of our own class doors.

"I am in no constraint to answer your question."

"Ichinose, there is no point in hiding it. Sooner or later I will crush you worthless lot."

He shifted his gaze to Horikita.

"And it seems like it will be sooner rather than later, you all have piqued my interest. Entertain me well, Suzune. I am looking forward to our next face off soon."

"I don't know how you found it out, but I do not permit you to use my name."

Ignoring her threats, one of his underlings passed him a cell with which he took a click of Horikita and me.

"Oi!!"

"Pardon me, I am a fan of you two. Kukuku."

With that he moved on. Horikita's face had visible irritation on it, she must feel confused and threatened at the same time right now.

"Don't worry Horikita-san, I intend on taking on his challenge with the help of everyone. We will defeat him."

I looked inside the class where students smiled blissfully while we were threatened here.

"Do what you want.''

With that she walked into the class, she has been through unexpected situations one after another just now, it is not unnatural for her defenses to be high at the moment.

It might look on the surface that we are united but still at the moment coordinated teamwork is a pipe dream for us, we are still divided.

When I entered the class my eyes met that of Kushida, I was again reminded that the class was divided in more pieces than I counted.

--x--x--x--x--x--

BONUS : Short story for reading till end. OwO

(Author's note: Kushida's POV when Ichinose found her bitching)

It was late that night. I had just left Ayanokouji-kun's room after our celebration of passing the midterms ended.

I stood in front of the guardrails, facing the large body of water glistening under the moon.

What a calming view, I thought. However, despite the caress of the night breeze accompanying me, I felt the need to get something off my chest. No...I have to.

A deep sigh escaped my mouth.

"...Ah...How angelic can you be?

As the mask covering the heavy feelings within me slowly slid off my face, the chains keeping my heart in check faded away.

An image of two lovely girls flashed through my mind.

"Ugh. Horikita and you...You two are so annoying! Actually, no. You're more annoying. What I hate more than stuck up snobby girls are those who're capable of putting them down but isn't doing a single thing. Why are you trying to be such an angel? Hiding your flaws with that smile and figure of yours... Ugh. No wonder why boys flock to your call. How stupid, Ichinose."

Hate rushed through my entire body. Thinking about their disgusting faces, the urge of letting the power itching the soles of my feet could no longer be contained.

"Ah, she's the worst! So stupid! You're so stupid! Fix your damn angel attitude. It's so annoying!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Damn you.

Ding!

!!?

"Who's there?!"

A foreign sound from behind rang inside my ears.

No way. No way. No way! No way!

"Who are you?"

A girl hiding behind the shadows slowly met the light, revealing their figure from head to toe.

I can't believe it.

"...It's just me...Ichinose," she said, turning around. "You left your phone at Ayanokouji-kun's place. Here..."

My feet picked themselves up and went towards the strawberry-blonde-haired girl as fast as they could.

Bitch.

I peered into her eyes and quickly took my phone out of her hands.

Now that it's come to this, I have to make sure she throws that memory of hers straight to hell.

I opened my mouth and asked softly, "Did you hear?"

Of course, I was sure that she did. But with this, anxiety will start to devour her.

"I-I didn't..."

She said it! Idiot.

"Oh? So you can lie too? I wonder what other things you could possibly be hiding..."

I gently placed my hand on top of her shoulder.

I want to know how nervous you can get, Ichinose.

Slowly, my hand slid through her arm. Although I was mainly in contact with her uniform, I could feel the softness of her skin beneath the clothing.

Truly that of a body that boys flock for.

I shortly let go of her.

"...What are you doing?"

I looked into her eyes. I want her broken.

"Listen, Ichinose. If you dare breathe a word to anyone about this, I'll make sure the next 3 years of your stay here will be hell."

That, I'm sure of.

"...How would you do that?" Ichinose asked, her voice trembling.

"I'll make sure that Class D never achieves anything. For the next 3 years, everyone will only go through failure after failure after failure."

As I promised that to her, Ichinose's eyes shook in terror. The image of the miserable Class she cares so much about struggling just to meet the same ending, over and over again. She must be scarred.

She slowly opened her mouth.

"T-That's cruel...I don't understand why you resent me, but if there's anything I can do to change that, I'll try my best..."

Is this bitch serious? How dense can you get?

"Ah, there you go again."

"That's the exact reason why I think you're so annoying. What's with the angelic act? That smile of yours. That figure. No wonder boys flock around you."

"T-That..."

This is it...

"Well, because you're so angelic, you might not even care what I do to you. Then, what about your precious classmates you seem to care so much about?"

Break, Ichinose.

"What do you mean?"

I went closer to her ear and slowly let out my soft desires.

"I'll spread rumors that you never left Ayanokouji-kun's room the night of the celebration."

Ichinose let out a soft gasp.

"You know that isn't true..."

"Who cares? Rumors are rumors for a reason. Nobody gives a damn whether they're true or not. You and anyone else involved will still suffer."

Now that I think about it, it really fits, no? Such a popular girl with a figure no man can refuse. One way or another, rumors will head towards her way...

"Fitting headline, is it not? Class D's Angel's Secret Boyfriend."

...And if she ever even gives off the feeling of betraying me, those rumors will hit her much earlier.

"Please stop! I promise not to breathe a word about this to anyone."

Of course, you do. You have to.

Well, that's enough.

I turned around and took a deep breath, the air rushing through my lungs never felt this satisfying.

I locked my fingers together and held them towards my chest.

I turned around again to meet eye to eye with Ichinose-san.

"I'm sure you won't! Well then, Ichinose-san, it's getting pretty late, isn't it? It's dangerous for two girls to be alone in the middle of the night, so I think this is a good night!"

I slowly walked towards her side. I left a sweet whisper as I passed her.

"I guess this is our little secret."

I walked away, leaving Ichinose-san at the scene of the tragedy.

--

Island Arc begins (Vol-2)

Chapter- 1

We sat in the first class restaurant, waiting for our food to arrive as the blissful melody of the piano filled the air. The walls made of glass not only allowed the radiant sunlight to lighten up the room but also offered a magnificent scenery of the endless blue ocean and the wide blue sky.

The luxury cruise ship- Speranza was simply a divine view for a kid like me who was unaware of the existence of such luxury. As our food arrived Mii-chan's face lit up. Apparently there was this Chinese dish she always wanted to try as a kid consisting of fried shrimps and Longjing tea.

I and Shinohara-san decided to go with Garlic Butter Baked Salmon, personally I wanted to try it because it was the only dish that did not appear the way it did when it was alive.

"This is the best! I never imagined the school would take us on a luxury cruise ship when Chabashira-sensei told us that the school had plans for our vacations."

"Haha same here, Shinohara-san. The school never ceases to surprise us."

I couldn't agree more on her opinion, it really was a shock when the school asked us to board Speranza which was casually docked at Tokyo Bay.

As I ate the Salmon slowly, I looked at Mii-chan who wore a delightful expression as she chowed down on her food. What caught my eye was behind her a student sitting alone on the table, apparently waiting for his dish. He was none other than Sudou. I am interested to see his choice in seafood as an athlete.

Once the waiter arrived with his food I noticed a small strip of meat rising from his plate as Sudou looked at the food with a childlike grin.

NO... I read about this, Eight legged and squirmy. The octopus is a Korean delicacy that's eaten alive. It is said that there is a sensation of suction cups on the octopus' legs as they stick to the mouth.

As I recited the description of the dish in my head which was filled with horror, Sudou casually wrapped the little octopus around his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.

The octopus won't go down without a fight and can be deadly. It is unadvised to swallow the octopus alive since it may try to climb back to the throat.

Sudou's cheeks squirmed as he chewed it, a little tentacle came out of his lips, trying to escape. But Sudou casually pushed it back in his mouth using his index finger.

I remained expressionless and used all my willpower to stop my brain from processing the information my eyes just sent in the last minute.

But I knew I had failed when the apparently dead Salmon in my mouth started to feel like it was squirming as well.

~Ah the weather was so good today. World peace surely is a wonderful thing.~

No avail. Even after my best efforts to distract myself I knew I will throw up anytime now.

NO... I can't do it again. I must swallow my food.

Mii-chan tilted her head in confusion as she witnessed me fighting my internal struggle.

"I don't feel like eating anymore."

Yes! I successfully swallowed my food and stood up in my seat.

"But, Ichinose-san the food is quite delicious. Why waste it?"

Shinohara-san who had already finished her share peacefully was simply clueless of the agony I went through.

"Haha I guess I forgot something important in my room. I will go and pick it. Once you all are done eating let's meet on the deck."

Both of them looked at me, trying to figure out the reason as of why I was avoiding the food.

I made an apologetic expression and left the site of disaster.

On the stairs heading to the docks I encountered Ayanokouji-kun.

"How is your vacation going, Ayanokouji-kun?"

"It can't get any better, what about you?"

It was going like a dream until a few moments ago.

"It is going just as you said, I am still trying to swallow the fact we have 13 days left on this sea paradise."

We ascended to the gate which led to the dock, sunlight came out of it making it look like some divine gate to heaven. A silhouette appeared on the gate, she was a girl with a great figure.

"You two look good together."

She made the situation awkward for the already shy Ayanokouji-kun.

"Haha, just if you can see your silhouette Kushida-san. It looked beautiful as well."

"There is something more beautiful waiting for you two at the deck, let's go!"

On reaching the deck, the spectacular scenery took my breath away. The gentle sea breeze kissed our bodies. Yes, this really was the oceanic paradise.

I looked at Ayanokouji-kun who was lost in the scenery. His hairs danced in the wind.

He appeared so harmless like this, but the hints Chabashira-sensei dropped are revealing otherwise.

Ayanokouji-kun suddenly turned his head towards me.

Eeek!! I was staring at him instead of the scenery, he is bound to find this creepy. I averted my eyes instinctively.

Oh no, now I have made things more awkward. As the awkward silence gradually crept in my heroine Mii-chan was here to break the ice!

"Ichinose-san! We are going to rent swimsuits. Wanna join us?"

"If you don't mind, can I join in as well?"

Kushida-san who was silent until now joined them on the hunt for the swimsuits.

Just as I was about to answer, the mic on the deck was turned on. An announcement was broadcast throughout the ship for the students to assemble at the deck. So that they can have a look at the significant scenery.

Apparently school had loaned an island from the government in the south-east, that was the destination we were heading to.

"Well we already saw the scenery and all we should do is prepare for the private beach. What do you say, Kushida-san, Ichinose-san?"

"That sounds good to me Mii-chan."

"I guess I will enjoy the scenery a little more, it is my first time looking at the sea like this."

I politely turned her down and they left me and Ayanokouji-kun alone.

We looked at the island silently as the board took a round trip across it. To my surprise I did not find any signs of a resort or any luxury on it, rather it appeared deserted to me.

At one point my attention was caught by a bird which flew past a black rod which was situated on a small tower. Perhaps humans do live here and it is a resort with Nature as its theme.

"I will go down now, Ayanokouji-kun. I need to get changed into my jersey."

"Sure Ichinose-san, let's meet on the island again."

He said all this while glancing at me from the corner of his eye and once he was done he pointed his gaze back to the island. Perhaps he was fascinated to see it for the first time, like me.

I went down to my group's room. There I put on the jersey I used in the gym class, returned to the ship deck and waited till we reached the island.

"We will disembark now, starting from Class A. Cell phones are prohibited on the island so please hand them over to your respective homeroom teachers."

As the disembarking started Hirata approached me with a hint of worry on his face.

"Good morning, Ichinose-san. How are you feeling about the private beach we are heading to?" Hirata asked rather formally.

"Uh, it is cool to visit such exotic places. But they surely are cracking down on our personal items this time for some reason."

"Yes, that is the point of my concern. They are not only confiscating our cell phones but also the island looks more like a deserted one rather than a luxury resort to me."

He has a point, but what might school be planning for us. I waited for him to speak so that he could offer his conclusion to the matter. But it seems like he approached me for that very reason.

As I was trying to figure out what might be happening here it was time our class disembarked already.

"Guess we will know it now anyways."

I smiled at Hirata who smiled back at me and started to move towards his friends. Looking at them I was reminded of my friends. On searching I spotted them already down on the beach lining up in front of Chabashira-sensei.

Eek!! I am late! I hurried down once the faculty was done checking my luggage.

"Now that everyone is here I will start taking the attendance. When you hear your name, respond loud and clear."

She wore the same jersey as us students, which made the atmosphere more similar to a training camp than a summer vacation. Still not many of the students seemed tense as they amiably chatted among themselves in low voices.

The moment she was done a tall teacher stepped into the picture with a microphone in his hand.

"First of all I would like to say that I am happy that all of you arrived safely. However, it is unfortunate that one you were not able to join us on this trip."

Oh my such a bad timing to fall sick, missing this exotic vacation would be a grave loss if it were me.

We all waited for Mashima sensei to continue but he observed us all in silence while some adults in uniform were setting up some sort of special tent nearby. I noticed some computers and task chairs paired with them were brought by. It all started to look more like some monitoring measures on the students, but why would they need it in some vacation? On top of that we all are going to remain in a confined area probably rather than scattered over the island.

As we got more and more confused Mashima sensei took up the microphone like the Grim reaper raising his scythe.

"Well then. We shall now commence the current academic year's first special test."

"Wait what?!"

Even though the school was acting suspiciously I did not have any idea they would trick us into a special test amidst a deserted island.

Chapter-2 (Rules)

Chapter - 2

(Author's Note: So this part is a fundamental part of the island arc that I cannot alter whatsoever. This part is about the introduction of rules which are pretty similar to the real universe. I would advise to read it in order to refresh the memory of the rules as from the next chapter we can see how our gang strategizes through this test.)

"The test commences now and lasts for a week, concluding on 7th August when the date changes. This test will determine if you can live on a deserted island together as a group. In addition, I should warn you that this special test is both practical and realistic, designed based

On real-world corporate training."

Ike protested with the teachers for tricking us all into a special test suddenly. Although it was natural to be upset about such sudden retrogression of our vacation, still it was time he swallowed the fact and started to work on the test.

Other classes stared at us as Chabashira-sensei and Mashima-sensei took turns to shoot the flying Ike down. Once everything was resolved between them, Mashima-sensei proceeded to explain to us the upsides of the test.

"It is decided that each class will receive a total sum of 300 points. If they are used well then you all can easily enjoy the week like a normal trip. There is a manual we are going to hand you all for that very purpose."

Holding a booklet in hand Mashima-sensei raised it so that its looks were clearly visible to each class.

"This manual contains all the things you all can buy and all the ways you can earn or lose points in this special test. It also specifies the means to get food, drinking water and other necessities. From barbeque to Jet ski you can purchase them all using the points to enjoy your vacations to the fullest."

He sounded so convincing that my doubt grew further, since it was a test then why is he only telling us about the ways to enjoy it?

Students raised their doubts which were cleared by sensei one after another all directing to the conclusion that we can have fun as long as we abide to a bare minimum set of rules.

"When this special test period is over, all the points owned by the classes will be added to their respective class points at the end of this summer vacation without any exception."

Silence hit the beach, all the students murmuring among themselves and those trying to ask a doubt grew silent at once. The sounds of sea breeze were clearly heard as students started analyzing the situation.

This was a chance for Class D to actually pose a challenge to other classes since it was not based only on academics. Indeed shortening the gap between upper and lower classes.

Everyone suddenly got interested in the manual which was conveniently ignored until now.

"I will give you some supplementary instructions then."

Chabashira-sensei declared it in order to gain the attention of our class as every other teacher proceeded to do the same for their respective classes.

She introduced us to a wristwatch that we were expected to wear till the end of the test without fail. It supposedly was to ensure the safety of the students on the island since installing cameras or supervising by eyes would be impractical.

We were instructed to look at the last page of the manual which listed the penalties.

They were as follows:

A student deemed unable to continue the test due to significant deterioration in health or serious injury will be penalized by thirty points.

In the event a student has polluted the environment, he or she will be penalized twenty points.

In the event students are absent during the 8 AM or 8 PM roll call, five points will be taken for each student absent.

In the event a student is found guilty of an act of violence toward another class, robbing another class, or causing damage to another class' property, etc.. the offending class to which the student belongs will immediately be disqualified, and the individual will forfeit all of his or her private points."

It clearly was a competition of qualities like restraint, discipline and endurance. Our class points of the first month were deducted on nearly the same basis but in a much favourable environment and amidst lack of knowledge.

"Chabashira-sensei, are all classes going to have a roll call at the same place?''

"No, each class will have their roll call held at the base camp of their choice. But once the base camp is decided it cannot be changed without a justifiable reason, so think long and hard about the location you will choose as the base camp."

I see so that is how it is. Gradually the test is taking its shape but the question still remains of how we are going to spend our points.

"And sensei about a toilet? Are there some installed around here at every spot?"

"About that, you are on a survival test, do not expect such lax solutions."

Wait... what?

Sensei took out a basic toilet from the stack of cardboards stacked behind her. I was wondering what was there since we already had the watches on our wrists.

"This is a basic toilet. Each class will be supplied with one so handle it with care."

"You are not asking me to use that, right?" This time not Ike but Shinohara-san was the one to protest.

"Both boys and girls can use it. But do not worry, it comes with a single button tent so that no one can see you."

Chabashira-sensei explained as she set up the toilet with quite familiarity. She explained how it solidified the waste and suppressed the smell. It surely was reusable due to unlimited supply of vinyl bags but in the end it was too much of a compromise to the girls, who watched the process in disbelief.

"There is no way, I cannot do this at any cost!"

Karuizawa-san was the first to break the silence as all her friends joined her in the protest.

"Come on, just deal with it. Fighting won't bring you another toilet."

Ike.. now would not be a good time to try reasoning with them.

"Don't screw around! It might not matter to you but I can definitely not use the cardboard as a toilet for a week.''

Shinohara-san was ready to crush Ike alive if it was for a peaceful toilet.

"The decision is yours. However, you are not allowed to relieve yourself in the surroundings."

"But, there is no way I can accept this!"

"You have no other choice, Shinohara. You cannot go a week without using the restroom right?"

"..."

Shinohara stood there speechless, Ike had clearly won this round. She looked at Ike as if she wanted to kill him the very first chance she got. These two surely are not doing well.

"You all can discuss it afterwards, I will proceed to explain the additional rules."

Everyone forgot about the toilet for the moment.

"Soon you will be allowed to roam in the forest freely, but there are several designated 'spots' on the island. In these spots, there is what is referred to the right of exclusive possession, and only the class that occupies that spot may exercise those rights. The class that obtains the rights are entirely free to determine how they wish to exercise them. However, rights of exclusive possession are only valid for 8 hours after being invoked, after which they are automatically revoked. That means other classes can acquire those rights at the same time. Also, you gain one bonus point if you occupy a spot once. However, that point is provisional, and cannot be used during the testing period. Because the school is constantly monitoring you, there is no room for fraud. Please be aware of that."

"Huh? That is super important! Let us start looking for it right away."

Everyone's eyes were shining with hope, finding a spot had a very crucial role for our points. Since if we can occupy a spot over and over again then each spot will provide nearly 20 points over the week.

"I can understand your impatience, but be aware of the risks. After you take those risks into account you have to consider what to do. Everything is written in the manual."

On opening the manual I understood the hazards which she is talking about.

Apparently a specialized key card is required to occupy a spot. You can earn one point by occupying a spot each time. Occupied spots can be used freely, on using a spot occupied by another class without permission one will receive a fifty-point penalty.

Only a designated leader can use the key card. It is impossible to change the leader without a suitable justification. That hints that we need to choose the leader after thinking hard and long.

Chabashira-sensei explained those rules outlined in the manual. I started focusing on other pages. My attention was caught by the final rule.

On the seventh day, the last day of the test, you had the right to guess the identity of the other class' leader during roll call. If you managed to get the identity right, then you could obtain fifty points for each correct guess. Conversely, the other class would have to pay fifty points as compensation. If you moved to acquire a spot without caution, and your leader was discovered, then you would lose a great number of points. So, high risk, high reward.

However, a wrong guess was in itself hazardous, if you happen to be mistaken, you would suffer a fifty-point penalty for incorrect guess. This in itself was enough to make the unconfident guessers back off.

"One person must be chosen as the leader, no exceptions. However, you are free not to participate. Please tell me once you've selected someone. At that time, I will provide you with a key card stamped with the leader's name. You have time until roll call today. In the event that you do not decide by then, we will decide for you. That is all."

That means that the identity of the leader will be discovered only if one can glance over the card or catch them claiming a spot.

The manual included a simple map of the island, with only its size and the shape drawn. Things like the total area of the forest and the topography were completely unknown. It was more like a blank sheet of paper.

"It looks like we need to fill in the necessary parts ourselves."

A ballpoint pen had been given to us as well, for that exact purpose.

"It's good to have a spot near the boat where lots of teachers are,

right?"

"Hey, Hirata-kun. Isn't it better to decide ahead of time what we should do about the toilet?"

The toilet was definitely going to become an issue before long. The

girls' opinions were reasonable.

"Well, we can talk about a decision, but in the end don't we just have

to grin and bear it?"

"No, there could be another way."

Hirata looked at the manual, and then looked back up.

"It says that temporary toilets can be purchased and installed using our

points."

Shinohara and the other immediately gathered around the manual. The functions of the temporary toilets appeared impeccable. However, the problem was that we needed to spend twenty points per toilet. It was difficult to judge whether that was expensive or cheap.

"We absolutely need it! I mean, I really don't like that we have to

spend points... But if we don't, it's just impossible!"

A lot of girls, triggered by Shinohara's remarks, agreed. Toilets were paramount for them at the moment, they would rather quit to the ship than bear the toilet for a week.

"W-wait a minute here, you guys! Twenty points?! Just for a toilet?!"

Ike reacted with horror. Guys surely were more sturdier and compromising when it came to this matter. The class was being divided again.

"Yes, as a toilet, that one's good. But we already have this one! Right? We still have a lot of time left to use our points. It's bad for us to splurge now!"

"You don't get to decide that. Hirata-kun is going to consider all of our opinions and decide. Right, Hirata-kun?" Shinohara ignored Ike and pleaded

with Hirata to buy a temporary toilet.

"I see. At the very least, having a toilet for the girls would be—"

"You're free to consider everyone's opinions, but that doesn't mean you get to make decisions," said Ike, frantically trying to stop Hirata, who

appeared to be about to buy the toilet.

"Ah, shut up already!"

Yukimura suddenly joined the fight.

"It's not as though I don't understand the girls' desire to have a temporary toilet. However, I'm not convinced that we ought to arbitrarily spend our points, whether it's for boys or girls. I suppose if you want the toilet, then I'd like to at least make a decision after collecting a majority vote."

He slid his glasses up his nose, voicing his disagreement in a rather aggressive tone.

"I'm just making a natural request for a girl, that's all. It doesn't

involve boys at all."

"A natural request? Doesn't involve boys? I can't understand that. Isn't

that simply a form of discrimination?"

"Discrimination? Ah, this is giving me a headache. Hirata-kun, please

make them leave me alone."

Shinohara, unable to give up on the toilet matter, frantically pleaded for help.

"This test is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to bridge our point gap with the other classes. We can't use valuable points on things like temporary toilets. I have no intention of being in Class D forever. I don't agree with Shinohara-san, who's making arbitrary requests based on her personal wishes. I would like for us to uniformly decide upon a clear policy."

"Huh? Are you trying to say that I'm not considering anything?" she asked.

"Even money can move based purely on instinct. I hate that women argue so emotionally."

"Huh? That doesn't mean that I want to use our points indiscriminately. What I'm saying is that we should have at least the bare minimum. Do you not understand that?"

"Both of you calm down. Yukimura-kun, I understand what you mean to say, but if you speak so belligerently we're not going to resolve anything, are we? Let's do this calmly."

"Calmly? Don't you agree that we should, under no circumstances, use our points arbitrarily?" Yukimura asked.

"Well..."

Hirata was caught in an increasingly fraught situation. He didn't know what to do, yet frantically tried to mediate while doing his best not to show mounting concern.

Chapter- 3 (progress)

Chapter- 3

Hirata was clearly being pushed around as the boys and girls were trying to reach each other's throat. Being the font of neutrality he was unable to make a decisive move.

I will not allow this to go any further.

"Yukimura-kun , I agree we should avoid spending points arbitrarily but in the coming future what will you do if these girls are not able to handle it anymore and decide to quit? We will lose 30 points per student at that time. Do you have any countermeasures for that?"

"But if you follow that line of reasoning then they will soon enough desire more comfort which is clearly not reasonable."

"Your point is correct. But you should also reflect on the point that we are supposed to use nature to our advantage in other matters and endure through it but at the moment we are not allowed to relieve ourselves anywhere on the island or the sea."

Yukimura grew silent as if analyzing the point I stated. It was not much of a logic, soon he will remember the fact that we were given a basic toilet for that. But...

"Haha take that you monkeys!"

Shinohara did not give him the time to think out of it. But she was clueless of the fact that she was my next target.

"Shinohara-san that is enough on your part as well. I might have reasoned him into understanding the significance of the temporary toilet but I am not in favour of buying it right away either."

"What are you saying Ichinose-san?! We absolutely need that toilet."

"That is what you say but are you really ready to compromise the future of your career just because you were not able to use a basic toilet for some days?"

Being assertive was a necessity at the moment, gently making them understand the situation was fruitless, prime example of that being Hirata.

"B-But seven days are too much!"

While the girls surrounding Karuizawa-san joined the argument once they found the opening, she herself stayed quiet and observed us.

"I understand your concerns so I have a proposal that might be acceptable to everyone at the moment."

Everyone grew silent as the boys also looked at me with a questioning look.

"I propose we use this toilet until we can find one more spot after claiming our base spot. That way we can negate the 20 points used for the toilet gradually over the course of this week."

Everyone started considering my words.

"Yukimura-kun I understand you want to save the point but losing students will prove more fatal than 20 points, and Shinohara-san I understand you do not want to use this toilet over the next week but I ask you to grin and bear it for the time being, until we can find another spot to negate the damage."

Silence filled the air as the newfound determination filled the eyes of the girls.

"Very well, but only this once. I will not agree with one another point spent on comfort from this point on unless it is decided by majority vote."

Yukimura agreed as he swallowed his anger over the girls. This is just a stopgap measure they all will soon collide again.

"Hey! Did the other classes decide what they are gonna do already?"

I turned towards the voice, it was Kushida-san. Seemed like all the classes were ahead of us when it came to the test of unity, if they moved into the gigantic forest before us, then they also increased the chance of securing the good spots.

"We should start moving as well, this is no time for some leisurely chat over the toilet. I intend to do anything to protect our points, I will go and search for some camp areas and spots."

"Please do not go alone Ike, at least form a small team to do so."

Hirata-kun's concerns were genuine, if a group gets lost in the forest it will be more risk than reward.

Ike looked at the group with a questioning look, as if asking 'who wanna join in?'

Sudou and Yamauchi gathered around the impatient Ike.

"Anyone else?"

Ike asked as if finalizing his team.

"We will join in too."

Kushida-san who was accompanied by Shinohara-san and other girls that wanted the toilet most, gathered up to join them. They were indeed eager to find a new spot as soon as possible.

"No, these girls will just slow your pace Ike. Leave them be, the whole class will also enter the forest looking for a temporary shelter under the shade of trees. If you are slowed down the other classes will occupy other spots, ultimately widening the gap."

"But. . ."

Ike was probably bummed by the fact he was not able to move with the girls, but Yukimura-kun was already in survival mode. He was using all of his wits for the points.

"Akito-kun would you be willing to join them?"

All eyes turned towards the direction Hirata was looking at. Hirata probably was more familiar with the student known Akito Miyake than me, as I have observed that he was one of those students who tried to avoid the crowd. I wonder if he would comply with Hirata.

"Uh.. Okay I guess I will join in."

Indeed, perhaps both of them were acquainted with each other to some extent as Akito was hesitant to refuse Hirata's request. On top of that everyone was looking at him with hope, he shouldered the haste girls held in their heart to find the spot.

"Thank you! Thank you, Akito-kun."

After Akito-kun joined them, Ike and team were out searching for our base camp. We all headed to the forest in search of shade as planned.

Once we had secured a temporary place to wait for the search team, Hirata was the one to take the lead this time. I let him take it as for now there was no need for me to step in while he was in charge of coordination.

"Next. We've already heard some opinions, but I think we need to

search around and decide where our base camp will be. Where we settle will impact how we consume our points."

Indeed leaving it all to the search party would prove fatal if they returned empty handed.

I raised my hand to volunteer as followed by Kushida and other girls, this was our chance to gain an extra spot to obtain a toilet.

"That is great! We have 12 people volunteering. I will make 4 teams for now."

"Hirata-boy, I do not need anyone to accompany me. I plan to check the ocean, the beauty of the infinite sea is incomplete without me."

Kouenji shot a sharp gaze at Hirata, who was trying to figure out what Kouenji's motive was but the gaze successfully distracted him from that task.

"Uh.. Ok but regardless whether you find something or not, be back within two hours."

"Very well, I hope you common folks find something useful as well." He turned to the rest of us as he said that.

Now we were a person less to make teams, I looked around to find anyone who might be willing to join in, until my eyes fell on Sakura-san. She was the first student I met in the school, but it seemed like we two were not able to talk much after that encounter.

"Sakura-san, would you like to join my team?" I asked her but she just faced downwards and mumbled something. Probably was to decline my offer gently.

Next I approached Shinohara-san to team up. But for some reason she avoided me as she joined in with Kushida-san. Perhaps from earlier she was not yet on terms with the conditions I put up for the toilet.

I stood there with the only volunteer who was yet not teamed up with anyone, it was none other than Ayanokouji-kun.

"Looks like it is the two of us who did not find a team."

"I can understand my situation, but how come you did not find any teams?"

"Haha guess everyone is joining Kushida-san and Karuizawa-san at the moment."

"I see."

We stood there waiting for Hirata to be done with other groups and instruct us for our next task.

"I think I will join in too." A calm voice reached my ears from behind.

On turning behind a familiar girl standing there, it was Horikita-san. I smiled happily as our team was now ready, on top of that someone like Horikita-san was complying with us in team activities.

Just as Hirata was done with other groups, the search team returned running through the forest.

"Rive . . ha ha. A river! We found a river!"

"It has some mechanism installed around it! I think if we can set our camp there then our situation might take a turn for good."

They all were out of breath, probably because they ran to us in haste born out of the fear of losing the spot. I must say they all were really fast in the search or perhaps we were lucky a spot was nearby.

"We start heading there right now! I will stop all the teams which are nearby from heading out."

Hirata had his fair share of enthusiasm on hearing that as he stopped all the teams which were nearby.

Once he was done assembling them all it was apparent that only Kouenji was the one who was missing. I think we should head to the spot before searching for him as the spot is in a vulnerable position as long as we don't occupy it as our base camp.

"Let us head there right now."

We all started walking to the destination our search team had found led by the proud Ike. I walked along with Horikita and Ayanokouji.

"I hope I am not interrupting you two."

"No not at all."

From what it looked like, Ayanokouji-kun was not bothered by my presence, I turned towards Horikita-san who was walking quietly.

"Horikita-san, may I ask you a question?"

"Hm?"

"Why did you volunteer to join our group?" I asked her bluntly.

"I felt like I was being useless just standing around there, so I decided to help."

"I see, indeed we all need to work together in this test or we might not make it with many points next month."

"You are right I used to condemn Sudou and others for being weak in academics but right now as I walk to the destination found by them I cannot realize more how wrong I was calling them useless by then."

"I am sure that your abilities will prove to be helpful as well in this test, let us give it our best."

"Indeed.''

As we walked ahead, the verdant forest grew thicker and thicker it became harder to walk.

Eventually, a river flowing through the island came into our vision, it appeared to be clean from the looks of it. At the river's edge, an equipment was installed on an unnaturally placed boulder. Hirata and his team started setting up the tents and other necessities for camp near the river.

"Okay. The water is beautiful, and there's shade that blocks the

sunlight. The terrain is level. This might be the ideal place for our base camp here. Amazing, work you guys!" Hirata said.

"Heh heh heh, I know, right?"

In the middle of the path I spotted a sign board that declared that the river was a designated spot and any unauthorized use is prohibited.

"Hirata-kun I think we should make this spot ours." I asked Hirata-kun so that we can make use of the river now.

"Are you sure Ichinose-san? This place is surrounded with trees, we will need to revoke the rights every 8 hours, if by any chance someone happened to be watching from the bushed the identity of the leader would be exposed."

"I think making use of the river is important as well, if we can find drinking water from it by any means it might save us many points as well. On top of that this place is a little cooler than the rest of the forest due to the river nearby, not to mention it also provides us protection from the sun due to the trees."

"I agree, I think we will try to keep the area surrounded so that no one can figure it out."

"Yeah, now the next question. Who will be the leader?"

As I said that everyone turned their attention to us, being the leader was a responsibility that could decide the fate of our class.

While everyone observed us from a distance as if trying to avoid being the leader. Kushida-san asked us to make a circle in order to avoid anything from getting leaked if anyone happens to be spying on us right now.

"I think people like Karuizawa-san, Hirata-kun, Kushida-san and Ichinose-san should be avoided for this role since they stand out too much."

Ike-kun had a point there, he surely was sharpening his focus to win points.

"But that being said the leader must also have a sense of responsibility as one careless mistake might reveal the identity. I think Horikita-san meets the conditions for being a leader." Kushida-san proposed.

"I would have gladly complied with your proposal, but after the day Sudou's case was taken back by Class C boys; Ryuuen Kakeru came to the door of our class and clicked a pic of me and Ichinose. I think he might be able to guess it at some point." (Read chapter 14 of vol 1)

That was true, although it happened when the class door was shut, Horikita-san did not seem to be hiding it by any means.

"I see, then making you the leader might prove hazardous."

Horikita nodded slightly.

"I think Sakura-san would do the deal, she is almost invisible."

It was Shinohara-san this time, if I remember correctly she sits beside her in the class. No wonder she noticed her.

"I would have agreed on that, but assuming that we might claim more than 2 spots then the leader will need to be on a constant move on every 2 to 3 hours, on top of that we are not guaranteed the luxury of having spots near each other given that other classes will be searching and occupying different locations as we speak."

This time Hirata-kun was the one to reject the proposal. As everyone looked at each other to find a suitable candidate for the leader, my eyes caught Ayanokouji-kun's.

He sensed the idea in my eyes, but before he could say anything I coined the idea.

"I think Ayanokouji-kun is best for the work."

Not only we can't find a candidate at the moment, but I also need to learn about him.

Everyone looked at him with doubt in their eyes, as if questioning if he was responsible enough for the role.

"I am sorry Ichinose-san, but I have a bad history of losing my belongings since my middle school years."

"I will hold onto your card then, that will also work as a good strategy to fool any possible spies."

That was a nice dodge Ayanokouji-kun, but I am sorry I must not let you escape.

"But Ichinose-san can you move around so much a whole week?" Hirata asked out of genuine concerns.

"Do not worry Hirata-kun. I happen to be adept at polyphasic sleeping cycle since my childhood. I will be alright with it."

"I see then now it is up to Ayanokouji-kun now."

Everyone looked at him with hope, I don't think many have faith in him but they fear that if they reject him as a candidate then it might be their turn next.

"Uh .. Ok I will do the same, but I don't think it is the best idea."

"Does everyone agree then?"

Everyone nodded and it was confirmed that Ayanokouji-kun will be the leader. I went to Chabashira-sensei who was observing all this from a distance and issued the key card with the name Ayanokouji Kiyotaka printed on it.

Chapter- 4 (Search)

Chapter- 4

Things started moving once the leader was decided. We all were divided into groups with different tasks, some headed to forage food while others tried catching fishes in the river. The fishing rod was cost effective for certain, considering that we might be able to cut back on the food which we needed to buy with points.

We all had decided to go with the teams of volunteers which were decided beforehand, in order to avoid spending our time strategizing. I, Ayanokouji and Horikita were given the task to search for spots, after all if we found a spot we will be able to claim it then and there.

"I am sorry to drag you into the role of leader Ayanokouji-kun."

I said those words with an apologetic expression as we pushed deeper into the forest.

"We can discuss that later Ichinose-san, in the forest talking about that may prove to be fatal for us."

Horikita-san shot down my attempt to apologize casually, she was right I should wait a little to soothe my guilty conscience.

As we walked into the forest I gazed at the sky which did not feel that radiant now while the damp heat made us sweat like crazy.

Just as I was about to look back down my eyes caught the same black rod I spotted on the island while the boat was circling around it.

"Hey guys do you see that?''

I pointed my index finger towards it. It was far from here so it might take nearly half an hour to reach considering the topography of the forest we are moving in. On following my direction they both were able to spot it as well.

"Yes, it looks like it is attached to some structure. We should head there at once it might be a spot we can claim."

I nodded in agreement and we started to move in its direction, Ayanokouji gave a small nod and followed us quietly. Now I was confused if he was simply silent as usual or he was erupting with anger from inside because I made him the leader.

After walking some distance, the ground became more level hinting that it was trodden by people in the past. Soon a small tower came into our sight, on closing the distance we found a device similar to the one we found in our base camp installed on the entrance of the tower.

It said Class A, 4 hours remaining. That implies they were here shortly after the test started, however claiming this spot ran the risk of being observed by other students. Perhaps Class A was confident in their hiding abilities.

As if taking the notice of the intruder, a well built man came out of the entrance accompanied by other students. It was Katsuragi Kouhei, it is said he relies on secure strategies so it is a little out of his way to claim this spot.

"Who are you?! Are you spies?" the student standing beside him yelled at us.

"No, we are here to check if this spot was still unclaimed. But it seems like you all were here in a flash after the commencement of the test."

Horikita and Ayanokouji stood beside me as I did the talk.

"Haha, you defects of Class D will not understand it. But Katsuragi-san was already scanning the island from the ship, not that you lowlifes will be able to apprehend it."

He was clearly provoking us, I could already feel the ominous vibes from Horikita standing behind me.

"That is enough Yahiko, they are not here with any intent to harm us. No point in talking so belligerently."

Katsuragi shot a sharp gaze at the boy student named Yahiko as if saying 'that is enough, stop now'.

"So, is this your base spot, Katsuragi-kun?"

"I am sorry but I will not be answering that question."

"Oh.. Ok I guess we will leave then."

I would have proposed to him to offer the location of his base camp in exchange for ours, but we might be the one at a disadvantage in the deal considering that our base is out in the open.

"That would be better for both of us."

With that we left venue Class A owned.

"We should have pressed them harder for information, we might have been able to enter the tower as well for surveying it."

"Horikita-san, your point is valid against any other opponent, but Katsuragi-kun would have threatened us to leave anyways since they had the rights of exclusive possession over the tower."

"I do not think we should have backed off without giving it a try."

"I agree but that might prove to be time consuming for both the parties, given that they claimed the spot in the early phases of the test it indicates that they already would have a search party searching for more spots like us. Considering this I decided that our class would be the one at disadvantage because we were the search party, so we cannot waste time on exploring already claimed spots, right?"

Horikita after considering my words carefully gave me a slight nod expressing agreement.

"I still cannot believe Katsuragi-kun was preparing for this test from the ship without any prior knowledge of it."

I admitted his superiority, he was simply on a different level to grasp the situation and bracing himself from way back when we only had fun on our mind.

"I must admit that his observation skills are sharper than any student of our class." Horikita could not help but admit it as well, while Ayanokouji walked in silence behind us.

"Ayanokouji-kun, perhaps did you spot anything from the ship?"

I remember he was looking at the island before we disembarked, at that time I assumed it was out of curiosity but he might have a different motive to do so.

"I am sorry, but I was just admiring nature. It never occurred to me that I should check the island for some habitable spots."

Eh. .. . this surely was not what I expected. I do not sense anything different in him that Chabashira-sensei was trying to hint at.

"Oh okay. . I think we will search for them as fast as we can."

As we picked up our pace I looked at my watch, it was 1:30 already, we were asked to return to camp by 3:00 regardless of results. The heat was also getting unbearable.

I took out the only bottle of water we had.

"Let us divide it equally among us, if one of us dehydrates and faints then the search will turn into a rescue operation instead for the other two."

"Sure."

We sat under a tree to take some rest, I sat in between Ayanokouji and Horikita. I hope I am not intruding their private time. One by one we took the bottle and drank one third of it. As we calmed down under the soothing shade of the tree, faint winds blew towards us from the forest.

"I think I hear a faint sound of ocean waves." Horikita-san was the one to point it out. Now that she mentions it, on listening carefully I can also hear them.

"We should check it out, since the beach was on the other side we might be able to find something there."

We picked up the pace and jogged through the greenery that became increasingly obstructing as we pushed forward in the direction of the ocean.

Horikita, who was the one leading us, came to a sudden halt.

"Stop!"

She yelled the warning at us, on approaching her slowly I discovered the reason. It was a cliff's edge, would have been a real tragedy if we did not stop on time. One would not reach the bottom without some major injuries.

"It was no use, this is just a cliff. We should back off already."

"Horikita, I think I saw something shining there. Probably a piece of metal."

Ayanokouji pointed towards a point on the cliff which was at some distance. He was right, there was something shining oddly. We walked along the cliff carefully to investigate it.

On arriving we found a steel ladder which was embedded manually into the cliff. It was hot to touch due to the direct sunlight falling on it but we decided to descend anyways.

Shortly after we got down we found a small hut, there did not appear any device on it so I was not sure if it was a spot. But on opening the door we discovered the device installed on one of the walls of the hut; proof that it was a spot.

I noticed there were some fishing rods on the floor, apparently the class that owned the spot also owned the properties it held in it.

"We should claim it right away."

Horikita-san was right, taking any more time would bear no fruits.

"Yes."

I took out the keycard and handed it to Ayanokouji, who performed the task smoothly and handed it back to me. The timer was displayed counting down the 8 hours time period of ownership.

"Now that we own a spot we can easily buy a toilet for the girls!" I exclaimed with joy.

"I agree." A hint of relief showed up on the face of Horikita, she was probably happy to contribute to the class.

I noticed Ayanokouji was staring at the ceiling, and on doing the same I saw a small spot on it. It was coloured with nearly the same colour as that of the wooden ceiling.

"What do you think that is, Ayanokouji-kun?"

"I think it does not look that significant but then again the hut itself was hidden well so it might as well be something important."

"You are right, we should check it out just to be sure."

By now Horikita had taken notice of it as well. The question was how do we reach it?

One by one we looked at each other, my eyes met that of Horikita and we slightly nodded.

"Ayanokouji, you know how we reach there right?"

"Horikita, no. I can only lift one of you on my shoulder, even then it will be out of reach by some centimetres."

As if detecting our motives he frantically tried to escape, but I am sorry again Ayanokouji we must do it. There are no tables or chairs in this small hut that we might have used to avoid this situation.

"Do not worry about that, I will get down on one of my knees so you can climb on another while you hold Horikita-san, I think that will make up for the difference."

"You do understand how dramatic this looks right?"

"Yes, but we must explore that spot, I have a feeling it is more than a simple spot."

Ayanokouji reluctantly got on his knees as Horikita-san climbed on his shoulders. He got back up on his feets with ease, it was the right choice to let her climb given her lighter weight compared to me.

I crouched down and offered my knee as he took off his show casually with Horikita-san on his shoulders.

"Hey! Be fast. I am not enjoying this position much."

"You are the one to speak." he said with an indifferent expression.

He climbed up on my knee, it did pain a lot since two of them combined were heavy for my legs. But I will grin and bear it for now.

"It is a knob, I am opening it."

Glancing up I saw a very small chamber open up in the wall, more like a square hole in the wooden ceiling. A small piece of paper dropped down from it.

Curiosity was about to get the better of me, as I was about to move in order to check the piece of paper. But then I was reminded of Ayanokouji who was standing with Horikita on his shoulders.

"Okay get down, we should check what this is right away."

He slowly got down and put Horikita down as well. I grabbed the piece of paper and started unfolding it.

A moment of shock hit me on unraveling the contents.

Ayanokouji and Horikita gathered around me to check it.

The map was similar to what we received with the manual, but it had markings on it. Probably what seemed to be the location of this hut was marked with a green spot and the river around which we had our base camp was marked with blue. It also had the tower marked on it which Class A occupied.

There were other spots scattered around the whole map all either blue or green.

"This is a map with markings of different spots."

"Yeah, if we use this correctly we can claim many other spots."

"But would it not make it too easy for a class if they find this map?" I asked out of curiosity.

"No, given that the cruise circled around the island once before embarking some students took notice of the spots right away. That said, finding this hut was in itself hard so it was also possible that this map was never found or it was found by the time it was too late to use it."

"It seems the latter is the case with us, because by now all the classes would be hunting for the spots and probably would have discovered them by now."

"We should not give up without checking all of them out soon, even one spot might provide significant benefits to us."

"You are right Horikita-san."

I looked at the time, it was 2:40 PM, we need to return to camp right away now.

"I think we should return to the camp for now and inform others about this."

"I don't think so." Ayanokouji was the one to oppose me this time.

"We need to return or else we will not only miss the lunch but also worry others.''

"I understand that full well, but it is already high time the spots might be getting occupied as we speak. Going to camp and embarking on a new operation would easily cost us some good spots."

"But there is no guarantee we will find the spots right? So we should not risk it."

"You see the spots here are marked with two different colours, while the hut we stand in right now seems to be marked with green. On the other hand the spots which were easy to find like the river bank and the tower are marked as blue."

"I see, I surely did not notice that pattern. So you propose we search through all the green spots in order to increase our probability of success."

"Yes."

Upon noticing the location of other spots, I understood that this gamble will have a significant influence over our test.

Chapter- 5 (Gamble- 1)

(Art by: Madlad and Buzz.)

Chapter- 5 (Gamble -1)

Looking at the map it was apparent that a huge sum of points would rest on the outcome of this gamble. Assuming we will go in an anticlockwise manner over the green spots, in order to cover all of those it would take nearly 5 hours even if we were walking continuously, in view of the fact that it took nearly 2 hours for us to move till here from our base camp. But again we had walked till here so it might not be completely hopeless after all if we start running.

It is 2:45 right now, 5 hours from now would be nearly 8 which is our time of roll call. Missing the roll call is out of question, on top of that the spot itself will need renewal by 7:45.

It all will be for naught if all the spots were already occupied. I exchanged looks with Horikita as if to ask whether it was a good idea. There was determination in her eyes, she was right. If we had a weapon we must fight.

On exiting the hut my eyes registered two guys descending the fixed steel ladder.

"Should we hide?" I asked them in a low voice.

"Hiding and waiting for them to leave would be very time consuming, I think we should confront them head on and protect the identity of the leader."

Horikita was right, we cannot waste much time here. Both of them were already down the ladder, as we closed the distance among us I observed those two were none other than Katsuragi and Yahiko. Perhaps Katsuragi had noted the location of us from the cruise ship itself.

"Looks like we were late."

"Indeed, the spot belongs to Class D."

"I would need proof of that."

"Gladly, but once this spot is proved to be ours I must ask you to leave"

"Very well."

I unlocked the door to reveal the device that proved our rights and closed the door immediately.

"The countdown proves that one of you is the leader of Class D."

He is right, the rights were invoked within the last 10 minutes. It was a sensible deduction to assume one of us as a leader, but the same was true for them.

"Haha you outcasts have revealed such valuable information so easily."

Yahiko totally had no idea he was in the same predicament as well.

"Yahiko-kun, you said that Katsuragi-kun was the one who noted down the spots even before disembarking. That means you two are also here to claim the spots as fast as you can, even an elementary student can deduce that one of you is the leader."

His smile went from hundred to zero instantly.

"T-That is .."

"We will be leaving now, we need to report back to our class."

We all walked past them as Yahiko and Katsuragi stood there speechless. Even if we have more favourable odds than them for guessing the leader, at the end of the day it is still a game of luck for now. We will need more clues to take them down.

Ascending the ladder as fast as we can. Once we were out of sight of the Class A students we started jogging towards the green spot.

The blue spot would presumably be in a pre-occupied state by now. Still we must not completely avoid it as there is a slight chance it might still be unclaimed remains.

As we trotted through the woods eventually Horikita overtook me. She was clearly in better shape than me and Ayanokouji who was running alongside me seems to be doing well.

Within some minutes we started spotting some students in jerseys carrying firewood. We all came to a standstill at once and hid in the bushes.

"I think. . .hah hah ... That the blue spot here ... Have been claimed already."

"It appears so, we should proceed to the next spot coloured green. I suggest we change our course slightly towards the cliff so that we could avoid anyone who might possibly tail us."

Horikita-san was able to speak without any difficulties unlike me, I surely am out of shape. I just nodded in agreement.

"Let's get moving."

Even though it had low probability I deep down expected this spot to be unoccupied, so it was a little setback to me. But now we were already in the gamble, there was no turning back now.

We covertly passed through the woods at the maximum pace which was feasible for keeping a low profile. In spite of the fact that the fear of discovering other classes slowed us down, it was favourable for me since I was feeling a little out of breath again.

After another solid 15 to 20 minutes of running Ayanokouji stopped.

"I think this might be the spot, let us head towards the cliff."

Following his directions we advanced towards the cliff carefully. On reaching there we split up and started searching for a way to descend it, since this cliff edge was no path for a stroll there was no way a spot would be located here on the cliff even as the map hinted.

Just as I was about to take another step someone pulled me back, it was Ayanokouji.

"You plan to walk on air?" he said with an apathetic expression as he held me.

I was apparently going to head down the cliff with the next step, all this running had clearly left my brain oxygen depleted. Which did inhibit my ability to think ultimately.

"I am sorry, I will need to rest a little. Thanks for saving me."

"You two! I have found the ladder."

Horikita looked understandably perplexed to find me lying in Ayanokouji's arms.

"Let's go."

I forced myself up on my feet, I needed to go down there to act as the camouflage of the leader.

On descending the steel ladder we looked around the beach but nothing that looked like a spot came into our sights. On turning back to the cliff I discovered a cove cave.

"Hey guys look there."

I would have believed that it was natural but something felt off, probably school had altered it to manufacture a spot. We rushed into it but ... the equipment was already displaying a countdown, it said Class B.

We all stopped in our tracks, the cove cave was most probably spotted by someone from Class B while they were on cruise. There is no way one would find it after disembarking.

My knees buckled as I fell on the earth. This was too much for a setback, one after another spot we discovered to be preoccupied.

Ayanokouji and Horikita also sat down beside me.

"I don't think there are any spots left, we should head back to the base camp."

"I agree, there is a high chance even the other spots might be claimed as well. Seems so the map was useless after all."

Apparently Horikita held the same opinion as mine.

"No, we should head for the next two spots." Ayanokouji opposed me in an indifferent tone.

"Why are you saying that, Ayanokouji-kun? We can still save some time if we turn back now."

"We might miss out on two good spots if we do that."

"Are you even considering the fact that we just came across two spots which were preoccupied and not to mention the spot we occupied would have been claimed by another class as well if we had found it after a small delay."

Horikita was clearly not willing to head to the other spot, indeed I share that thought. On taking her arguments into account I highly doubt we will find success on stretching this lost gamble further.

"What you said is true but look at the map, the next two green spots are clearly different than these two."

As if to consider Ayanokouji's words she took up the map as I peeked over her shoulder. The spots appeared pretty same to me, like, they were just green spots like this one. Although he was right the green spots were hard to discover yet classes did find them anyways.

"I do not get your point."

"Beats me as well."

He took the map from Horikita and faced it towards us.

"See unlike the other two spots which were located near the cliff these two are well hidden deep in the forest. That fact alone significantly decreases the probability of it being discovered from the cruise ship.

And on top of that if you factor in the certainty that these green spots are hard to find, it makes them nearly invisible without help of this map. So risking it by delaying the search would not be a wise move."

He taught us like some teacher who was teaching an elementary schooler. Is this the quality Chabashira-sensei was trying to hint? A little by little I started to grasp the situation as he explained to both of us.

"Very well I am convinced, but if we happen to fail then we might as well lose not only 15 points in our roll call but also leave our base camp vulnerable for a small period of time."

"Indeed we will need to pick up the pace."

Both of them looked at me, I was clearly more of a hindrance to them than I was of help. Should I just avoid this gamble? I don't think I can make it.

NO! I will give it my all, there is no way I will become a dead weight. These two here are ready to run the same distance we have already covered even without food or water. Who am I to disrespect them by giving up so soon.

I looked at my watch, it showed 3:30. Apparently we had made it here from the hut in roughly 40 minutes. With that in mind I assume we will need approximately 200 minutes to cover all the spots and return to our camp.

The question is if I can run at the same pace as before for 200 minutes without food and water continuously? There was only one way to find out and that was to run.

With my heart filled with determination I climbed the ladder to get back to the island.

Chapter- 6 (Gamble- 2)

(Art by: Madlad and Buzz)

(Author's note: I am sorry if these notes are getting annoying I would like you to refer to the map I drew earlier if you do not understand which spots they are talking about or how Ichinose calculates time to travel between spots, it is calculated by the time take to reach from D to H in the map. And yeah this is how a cove cave looks like.)

(source:https//url?sa=i =https%3A%2F%2F%2Fpin%2F332140541239119657%2F =AOvVaw3hAXXJuG6iWmkdfv_XJEYV =1607016914049000 =images =vfe =0CAIQjRxqFwoTCMCWidbqr-0CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD)

We ran towards the next spot in the same formation as before, from top we might have looked more like an arrow as Horikita led us and I followed her with Ayanokouji on both sides.

We already were moving through an overgrown jungle when compared to the flora we found near the river but, to my surprise the forest was getting denser as we advanced towards the next spot.

After running for nearly quarter an hour the woods are now nearly impassable, jogging was not possible and sense of direction itself was threatened due to the closely packed trees. I was tempted to believe there was nothing useful beyond this forest, but the map boldly stared back at me displaying the spot that could be in our sights anytime now.

The sound of water falling was audible to us, without any verbal agreement we all approached the source.

A small waterfall, roughly 10-15m tall, was discovered as the source of the sound. Even so it was not tall it still was wide, water came down rapidly and made its way through the forest.

"I think it is the same river our class has claimed."

"I agree, according to the map there should be a hidden spot here."

"Let us split up and search for it."

I looked at my watch; time was 4:06. Seemingly it took us 35 minutes to reach here.

I scanned the area thoroughly but there was no such device in sight which could be used to claim this spot. Deep down I also held the doubt if one river would really offer two spots.

After 10 minutes of searching we met up again empty handed.

"Are you sure we read the map correctly?"

"Yes you led us all in the right direction, Horikita."

Ayanokouji was confident in the location, but was this really a spot?

Silence filled the air as we racked our brains to understand the map. I exchanged looks with Horikita, who was clearly tired as well by now which was bound to stunt her cognitive abilities.

Ayanokouji suddenly bent down and picked a pebble.

"It cannot be the old cliché right?" He said with an indifferent expression as he aimed the rock towards the waterfall.

"Haha that happens in movies and books, no way it will be here Ayanokou-"

He threw the rock at the waterfall which clearly passed through it without making a sound of another collision with the back wall.

NO WAY! There is a cave hidden behind it?!

"We should check it, the spot was meant to be hidden after all."

Both of them moved towards the water as I stood there speechless, soon I collected myself and followed them.

He threw in another pebble just to be sure, because if we did walk in the water and were met by another wall of rock I will really feel agonized over the fact that I got wet over nothing.

"Let us move in."

"Who is going first?"

We exchanged looks as all gazes appointed Ayanokouji as the chosen one.

After letting out a small sigh he walked into the water, I and Horikita observed him from far as if he was going to perform some magic trick.

"Come in guys, there is a device installed in here."

On the surface there was no need for us to enter in as well, but in case someone happens to be spying on us it might end up revealing the identity of our leader.

We both walked in one after another, just before walking in I scanned the area one last time to check for any possible spy.

The cave was clearly built by the school, they surely were having fun digging holes throughout the island. The cave was cooler than outside since the sunlight did not reach here, also the reason why it was so dim. You could hardly tell, but it was gigantic. Probably it could hold up to 10 to 20 students easily.

At the wall opposite the water gate, a faint light was reflected in our eyes. Although it was quite dark we looked at each other and nodded in agreement. It was the device for claiming this spot. Completely drenched in water, Ayanokouji took heavy steps towards the device.

I took out the keycard and handed it to him, and it dawned upon me now, that the keycard was soaked in water.

"It is still working right?" I asked him with my voice filled with fear.

"There is only one way to know."

He used the card to claim the spot. As the device displayed the countdown, a current of relief ran through my tired body.

"This is a splendid achievement, we should head to the next spot without any delay."

Horikita spoke the cruel words.

"Right."

It is 4:25 right now, it will take approximately 2 hours for us to move till the next spot given the density of the forest in this part of the island.

As we walked through the woods, I recalled the last thing I ate. The Baked Garlic Salmon Bread which I left on the table of the cruise ship was taking its revenge on me.

After an hour of walking we heard a rustling of bushes even in the absence of wind. Instinctively, all of us crouched down and hid behind the bushes without making any sound. Footsteps were heard, two.. no three of them.

I raised my head to check out who they were, but Ayanokouji pulled me down for some reason.

"What are you doing?" I whispered in a soft voice.

He skillfully parted the leaves a little by little to reveal the sight beyond the bushes. It was indeed a better idea to watch through this rather than peek from above it. My bright hairs might have stood out in this surrounding.

On looking through the hole I saw three students walking towards us, the one leading them was none other than Ryuuen Kakeru. His eyes looked like those of a serpent as he scanned the forest.

Ayanokouji took out both of his hands slowly from the bushes which resulted in the hole getting closed.

"I do not think encountering them would be favourable for us, he knows two of us so he might be able to deduce the identity of the leader."

Horikita whispered in a low voice, she surely did sound more cute this way but this was no time to admire. Every second Ryuuen is closing the distance between us.

"Do not move and do not breathe."

Ayanokouji said in a calm manner as he picked up a pebble from the ground.

He threw the pebble in the other direction towards the bushes, which made a rustling sound.

I and Horikita held my breath as our hearts raced in anticipation. The sounds of footsteps eventually grew distant.

"Phew." I took a deep breath.

"Let us get moving, we should avoid the blue spot completely if Ryuuen is the one occupying it."

"Agreed."

Within the next hour we reached the approximate location of the green spots. This place did not have any sort of landmark either, only dense forest which allowed sunlight partially to reach the ground.

I looked at my watch, it was 6:37 already. It dawned upon me that the light did not decrease due to increase in the density of forest but rather because the sun was approaching sunset.

"We should split up and start searching right away. We are short on time."

Both of them gave me a slight nod and started searching the woods for anything that looked like a spot.

What could possibly be here in woods that could be claimed as a spot, the sound of sea was nearby but according to the map it was not near a cliff. Perhaps some underground bunker? School surely was drilling holes without much rhythm or rhyme so it might not be out of question completely.

After 15 minutes of search I sat under a tree completely exhausted, Horikita and Ayanokouji returned to me empty handed. They stood in front of me while I rested my back against the bark of the tree. Sitting down felt like an otherworldly luxury to my legs.

"I think we should return now, it is 6:54 we might make it before 7:45 to revoke the exclusive rights of possession."

Horikita spoke as she towered above me, still standing, I looked into her eyes, they were filled with satisfaction after claiming two spots already.

"Yeah su-"

Behind her head I noticed some ropes hanging from a tree at some distance from us.

"What?" Ayanokouji asked.

"Look at those ropes."

We jogged to the chosen tree, shortly on reaching there we discovered a wooden platform hidden above the canopy layer of the forest. On circling the tree I found a ladder made out of ropes coloured brown, nearly identical to the bark of the tree.

"Let us climb this."

They gave me a slight nod. I pulled the ropes with all my might without jerking, they seemed good to go. On climbing above I found a small tree house. This place was not taller than the tower, but still a good part of the island was visible from here as it was above most of the surrounding trees. The school surely did hide this place well in the natural splendor of this island.

Both of them climbed up and we entered the tree house, it was a small room which had walls well plastered. It did not look as a tree house at all, the view was more akin to a capsule room.

There was a window allowing the sunlight into it, a small drawer and a spiral staircase. No device was visible in the room at first, but the spiral staircase did not lead to another door but to the device itself which was attached to the ceiling.

"This place looks pretty modern to be on an island."

"You are right Horikita-san. It would prove to be a peaceful shelter for up to 3 to 4 people."

"Anyways, Ayanokouji you should occupy the spot already. I will check through the windows to make sure we are not being spied upon."

"Very well."

I handed the keycard to Ayanokouji who ascended the stairs to claim the tree house. I was giddy with happiness, now we hold 4 spots. If we can just make it to the roll call in time and also revoke the rights of our base camp before it is snatched we are good to go.

But... It was already 7:05, looking at the map it would take nearly an hour and a half to move back to the camp if we are forced to walk due to the thick forest.

"We must hurry!"

"Yes, let's go."

Following the map all of us rushed through the woods, rather than running we jogged and hopped to avoid being stuck by some trees.

It did not worry me much that someone might claim our spot much since by 7:45 they would be at their own base camp to attend the roll call of their own class. My prime concern was the points we might lose on failing to attend the roll call and how much worried others might be for us.

We came across a sudden partition in trees as in the course of the next 50m the forest thinned out and trees became smaller. This was a sudden development in our luck but it also meant that we need to run at our top pace now.

"This is our chance, run as fast as you can!"

Horikita yelled at me and Ayanokouji in an ardent tone.

We picked up our pace and eventually fatigue made its way into my body. The pain due to the lactic acid accumulated in my muscles was getting more and more unbearable as I gasped for air. The humid climate did not do me any favors either.

But still I kept running alongside Ayanokouji.

Gradually my pace decreased as the distance between me and Horikita increased.

"Hah.. hah . . .Go back without me .. .hah . . you two will at least be able to attend the roll call. I will try to reach the camp as soon as I can."

They both stopped and looked at me. After checking her watch Horikita and Ayanokouji gave each other a nod.

"Very well, we will do that."

I gave Ayanokouji the keycard and they both turned their backs to me as I stood there taking heavy breaths. It is refreshing they can grasp the situation so well in crucial times, it was already getting dark if we slowed down the risk of getting lost in the woods ran high without a flashlight.

The right choice was to leave one behind and make it on time while they can.

Once I felt a little rested I started moving again. Apparently I had lost the sense of time by now, since I had not had any food or water for more than 6 hours my head was feeling dizzy.

I took heavy steps without any knowledge of direction in the dark, the ground started spinning. Looks like I won't be able to make it to the camp after all. Haha at least Shinohara-san would be able to buy her toilet now.

Every step I took became heavier and heavier, the feeling of loneliness crept into my heart and I felt the emptiness again. Guess this school was not an escape to my loneliness after all.

My knees buckled against my will and just as I was about to fall someone caught me.

"You did well, Ichinose."

I have heard this voice before.

Multiple flashlights shone behind the back of the man holding me.

"Ichinose-san!!" "Ichinose-san!" "Ichinose-san"

Those were voices of my classmates who were led by Hirata holding a flashlight as they marched towards us. All of them surrounded me, the face of the one holding me was revealed as the flashlight lit up the forest around us.

"Ayanokouji-kun."

I forced those words out of my tired lips.

"Pass me water, she is dehydrated."

Kushida-san who was clearly panicking, unfastened the cap and passed the bottle to Ayanokouji. Who held my head up and brought the bottle near my lips, I could literally feel the water flowing through my body when I drank it.

"Ichinose-san! Why did you push yourself so hard?!! What of you were injured?!!"

"Ichinose-san!! What were you thinking??!!"

Shinohara-san and Mii-chan bombarded me with questions as tears filled their eyes. Horikita watched us from behind the crowd with folded arms, when our eyes met she gave me a small smile. I see, so she can smile as well.

Even though everyone was tense, I was able to sense the happiness and relief in the air.

"I am okay now you do not need to worry." I gave them a smile as I patted Mii-chan on her head.

Even smiling was painful with these dry lips.

"You can ask her more questions when we reach the camp. Right now she needs food."

Ayanokouji took me up in his arms.

"Wha--! I will walk Ayanokouji-kun."

"No, you cannot. Should I ask some girls to carry you if you feel uncomfortable?"

"No no it is not about that, you yourself have ran a lot as well today. I do not want to trouble you anymore."

"You are right I will ask Kushida-san and other girls to carry you."

Ah! He is completely clueless of what others might think, on top of that Kushida-san was trying to spread rumours about us.

"Hey by the way why did you all get so late?" Hirata-kun asked me out of genuine concern. It is uncanny how he is ignoring the fact that Ayanokouji is carrying me as we speak.

"We found 3 spots across the whole island so it took us a lot of time to travel through them and claim them."

Everyone turned their necks towards me, Hirata's eyes widened in surprise. Wait did Ayanokouji or Horikita not tell them already?

"What?!!"

"We own four spots?!"

Everyone around us asked some variation of that question. When I gave them a slight nod, the whole class erupted with joy as everyone started screaming.

"Yaaaaaaaaay!!!!"

Wait for real? Did Ayanokouji and Horikita really not tell them? I looked at Ayanokouji who wore his same apathetic expression.

"They did not know?"

"What?"

"Did you not tell them?!"

I spoke louder this time, apparently due to the happy noises everyone was making it was hard to hear. But when he grasped my question he casually shook his head.

"The moment roll call was over everyone headed out to search for you, I never got time to explain things."

A group of boys and girls approached us and took me out of Ayanokouji's hands. They all lifted me up on their shoulders and walked back to the camp.

This in itself would prove hazardous as it clearly hints I am the leader, but since I am not the leader; no one paid any mind to it.

I see, so this is what means to be truly happy.

Chapter- 7

(Art by Madlad and Buzz)

(Author's note: Okay guys map update is here, if you have any doubts ask me in comments.)

A sense of peace returned to me on reaching the camp, my brain had gone through too much anticipation and fatigue in the last 8 hours.

"Here, Ichinose-san. Eat some fish, Ike-kun and Sudou-kun caught these from the river."

"Thank you, Kushida-san."

To my surprise this river fish had a taste far superior to the Baked Garlic Salmon Bread served on Speranza, so this is the power of hunger.

Kushida-san kept serving me more fishes and berries with a warm smile as I finished them one after another.

I looked into her eyes as she served me seconds. It is times like these when I tend to forget that her affectionate facade masks the hatred she keeps buried deep in her heart for me.

"Would you like to have more, Ichinose-san?"

"Thank you, Kushida-san but this would be enough for now."

"Oh.. Okay have some rest, I will leave a bottle of water here for you."

I nodded slightly, she was really an angel. The accident that happened that day seems like a bad dream to me now.

As she left I examined the whole camp. Even though we were sitting on hard earth in such humid weather, none of us were visibly affected by it. Most of the students chatted amiably amongst each other while those who preferred being alone sat at a little distance under the trees.

The flames of the bonfire contributed to the beauty of the peaceful scenery reflected in my eyes. The night sky was clearer here in absence of street lights.

Wait. . where is Kouenji? I scanned the whole camp again with my eyes, shortly they zeroed upon someone who was sitting on a tree.

Indeed, I should not have expected him to be sitting on a normal seat after all. As I stood up to head towards the tent, Hirata-kun gathered everyone's attention.

"Everyone I have some topics to discuss, but since it is already 8:30 now, there is a high chance we might be getting spied upon. Therefore, we should make a circle to discuss it."

Everyone gathered up to make a circle as instructed by Hirata, while Kouenji sat in his seat as if he had not heard anything at all. The girls sat down while the guys stood up so that they could voice their opinions easily.

Hirata placed a piece of paper on the ground, it was the map we had received attached to the manual. When compared to the map we just found it is more akin to a blank paper.

"Ichinose-san, can you mark the locations of the three spots you all have claimed across the island?"

"Oh, wait I have another map that has them already marked."

I put my hands in my pocket to take out the map, but...

"Where did it go?!"

Everyone gave me a questioning look.

"Oh uh are you talking about this map? This piece of paper dropped from your pocket when everyone raised you on their shoulders to celebrate."

My heart felt relieved when I realized that Satou-san had picked up the map, if by stroke of luck a student from a different class would have discovered it then things would have gone awry.

"Thank you! Satou-san."

I laid out the map on the ground. And one after another I explained to them how we discovered the hut, waterfall and the tree house.

"Wow! You found a hidden cave behind a waterfall! It sounds so dreamy."

"Haha we got all wet by the time we entered it."

"Still, you say it was quite gigantic right?"

"Yeah it can fit in 10 to 20 people easily."

"So cool."

Everyone looked at the map with dreamy eyes, imagining the thrill of finding such a place that normally existed in stories.

"Ichinose-san, can you keep going at this rate? I mean all the spots seem to be at quite a distance from each other. On top of that according to what you told me the timer of hut will be resetting in an hour or two.""

"Do not worry, Hirata-kun. Now that we are familiar with the location of the spots, we will be able to cover them all quicker than before. And given the fact that we will embark on the next trip earlier than before there would not be any need to run continuously this time."

"But Ichinose-san you have already depleted your stamina a lot, one of us will accompany Ayanokouji and Horikita you should get some rest."

Mii-chan spoke at a faster rate than usual, perhaps she had practiced it in her mind before speaking out of anxiety.

"She is right Ichinose-san you should let one of us handle it."

The boys joined in as well, it was refreshing to see how eager everyone was to help their classmates. Hirata looked at me with a smile on his face and tender eyes, as if saying 'just give up now one of us will handle it.'

"What you all plan is not possible."

Horikita stopped the marching army right in their tracks.

"Huh? What?"

"Why?"

"What do you mean it is not possible?"

"Let her speak, everyone."

On Hirata's command the girls grew silent at once, admit it or not, he clearly held more influence over the girls than I did.

"There were two Class A students that have deduced the fact that one among the three of us is a leader. If we go on reclaiming the spots without Ichinose then they can easily narrow down the identity of the leader to only me and Ayanokouji. On the condition that they happen to guess our leader correctly we will receive a 50 points penalty."

She spoke gracefully in a superior tone, silence filled the air as everyone took their time to analyze the piece of information she just threw at them.

Hirata's expression grew a little sad, perhaps it had dawned upon him that it was not possible to buy in some rest for me after all.

"I see, if that is the case then at least let one or two more members accompany you from now on. So that other classes would have a harder time to guess the leader."

Hirata spoke in a low voice, his tone seemed to deliver the message 'This is the least I can do for you.'

Everyone looked at each other, scanning to pick up a suitable candidate for the task.

"I think Sudou or Ike would do the work, Sudou has a lot of stamina as an athlete. On the other hand Ike is more familiar with the forest than most of us." Kushida-san proposed.

"That is more of the reason we need them here with us for camp activities, Sudou-kun and Ike-kun played a major role today in the functioning of our camp." Hirata clearly was keeping tabs of everyone's hard work and efforts.

In silence everyone scanned the classmates for someone to accompany us.

"I think Akito-kun would be an appropriate member." Hirata proposed.

Everyone turned their eyes to Akito Miyake who was standing on the perimeter of the circle beside Ayanokouji. He clearly was in a tough spot, but Hirata has a point no one else would be fitting into the criteria we just discussed.

"Will you please help us Akito-kun?" Kushida asked with her pleading eyes.

Several eyes filled with hope were once again upon him, anyone was bound to buckle under such pressure.

"Okay I will do it."

His tone did not hint any attempts to escape, rather he sounded bold as if accepting his fate as the chosen soldier.

"Thanks a lot Akito-kun!"

"Thanks man, we will give you an extra fish to eat when you return."

Sudou slapped him lightly on the back, perhaps this was his way of communicating respect.

"Now moving to the next topic, I think we should buy the toilet now. It has been hard on the girls today to use the toilet given to us by the school."

"Yes!"

All the girls exclaimed in sync.

"I agree, but after this purchase not a single point should be spent on comfort without a majority vote."

"You got it."

With that decided, the circle was disassembled. Time was 8:54 at the moment, the timer of the hut is supposed to reset after 10:30 if I am right. Better choice would be to head to the hut right now and have some rest there, it will also grant us some peace of mind.

As if following the same train of thought Ayanokouji and Horikita approached me with small bags on their shoulders.

"I will pack some water and food, you guys catch up with Akito while I inform Hirata that we are leaving."

Horikita gave me a nod and turned back to fetch Akito, but for some reason Ayanokouji stayed back.

"Yeah before that."

Ayanokouji took out the keycard out of his pocket and offered it to me.

"You should hold onto it, I might lose it out of carelessness."

"Haha okay no problem, I am a little doubtful of myself since I lost the map once."

"Don't worry, Ichinose. You are still more responsible than I am."

"Haha don't sound so self deprecating Ayanokouji-kun."

He was not irresponsible at all, not even a bit. After leaving me in the forest, he was the first one to find me. He could have waited and taken the credit of claiming all four spots as the leader but he chose to rescue me first. Same was true for Horikita who was the prime reason I pushed my speed to the limits to cover all spots in time. I truly was blessed with capable companions.

By the time we talked Horikita was back already, accompanied by Akito.

"Waah! So fast. I will go and get ready right now."

I jogged to my tent to grab my change of clothes then headed towards the newly installed toilet to get changed. My clothes were still a little damp from the waterfall, especially my undergarments.

Once I was done changing I informed Hirata and we left for the hut with a flashlight. Horikita led us towards our destination, to my surprise by the time we reached there it was already 10:35. Perhaps we were moving slower in the night to avoid loss of direction.

The sea looked more beautiful at night, but the moon was hidden behind the clouds. Naturally the island would receive some rain soon, the heat was just getting more and more intolerable.

"Let's descend, the device will reset any second now."

On Horikita's command we descended the ladder to discover the hut was still safe. It did not belong to anyone since the rights were reset already.

"Should we wait a little to fix the timing a little? I mean if we have four spots it is better to have them reset at two hours, so that we have ample amount of time to travel."

"That is correct we will do that, I think it is advantageous to leave the tree house and our base camp at a short difference so that we can have more time to rest at the base camp. Because if we are continuously on our feet every two hours then our health is bound to deteriorate by the end of this test."

As we discussed our strategies the team leader and Akito sat down on the floor. We need to rest as well.

"That sounds like a great idea, let us rest a little here before leaving for the Waterfall. In view of the fact that we will take a direct route to the waterfall instead of heading to the cove cave we will reach there in an hour."

"We will need to get moving within an hour at most."

"Precisely. The waterfall will reset nearly around 12:20, so we should sleep a little before claiming the hut."

"But if we all sleep then, the hut will be in a vulnerable position. We need someone to be awake and keep an eye for any intruders."

"I will do that." Akito spoke up for the first time.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah I am sure, you guys have already travelled a lot today. Some sleep would help you all."

"Thank you, Akito-kun that provides me peace of mind."

"Haha no problem, Ichinose-san."

I sat down on the floor, with reassurance in my heart I dozed off even before I knew it. This happens rarely when one sleeps instantly, but right now my body needs rest more than anything.

Lost in my dreamland I felt a comfort which felt long forgotten to me, generally after so much fatigue one does not dream while sleeping.

But... to my surprise I found myself on the cruise ship again, to be specific on the restaurant table.

There was a big octopus sitting on the table next to me, it casually had a Sudou wrapped around his tentacles.

I need to wake up, like right now.

It swallowed Sudou a little by little as Sudou made his futile attempts to fight back. "Help me Ichinose!" "Dammit." I sat on my table pretending none of it happened at all, until the octopus glanced at me from the corner of its eyes.

Stop this!

With a jerk I sat up at once, I found myself back in the hut. Phew, I was so convinced it was a dream yet it felt so horrific. I glanced at Horikita who looked 10 times cuter when sleeping, with her eyebrows not frowning. Her beauty increased by leaps and bounds.

I looked at Ayanokouji who was also sleeping peacefully. Wait... On looking closely.. This guy does not look like Ayanokouji.

Eeek!! Akito is asleep!

My heart froze as I found the gate of the hut was open. Panic ran through my head as I turned it towards the device. It was still unclaimed. Phew.

Ayanokouji entered the hut, it was dark but I can imagine his indifferent expression on finding me awake.

"Awake already?"

"Appears so. What time is it?"

"11: 15 you should get a little more rest."

"Haha no no it is okay, why is Akito asleep by the way?"

"He looked sleepy to me, so I took over for him."

Ah! This guy needs rest as well! Someone hammer it into him.

"But Ayanokouji-kun you should get some rest as well."

"I did get rest when you were busy eating in the camp."

Oh.. Okay but then when did you eat? Asking him more questions would probably annoy him.

"Haha I see, I surely was hungry back there."

"Indeed. Now that you are awake, let us claim the spot before waking Horikita and Akito they still have some time left to rest."

"Yeah sure."

We performed our ritual once again, of exchanging the keycard and revoking the rights.

"Wanna take a stroll? Now that the clouds are gone the stars have showed up." He asked me in a gentle tone.

"Awesome! Let's head out right now."

Now that I think about it, we have not had much time alone. We walked out of the gate, I observed he was not wearing any shoes. I did the same, perhaps the sand was cooler in the night.

As expected, I walked on the cool sand alongside him, adoring the tranquil ocean against the starry sky. Such a spectacle would never exist in the neon cities which did not sleep at night.

"Beautiful isn't it?"

Ayanokouji spoke looking at the glassy sky twinkling with stars above us. His clear eyes reflected the stars beautifully.

"Yes, I can't get enough of it. Wish we had a camera to capture this magnificent display."

"Indeed, I guess we have to burn this image into our eyes for now."

(Source:https//url?sa=i %2Focean-night-sky =AOvVaw3Wo-upqGeDHjJ3rHEyqz30 =1607141329332000 =images =vfe =0CAIQjRxqFwoTCOiCw5K6s-0CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD)

We stood there in silence, cherishing the sight which was only heard in stories till now. After a while he spoke again.

"We should get moving, otherwise we will have to run till next spot."

NO! Please no more running, I will wake the two right now.

"Aight! Let's wake them up."

We walked to the hut to find an already awake Horikita sipping on water.

"What time is it?"

"Uh.. 11:25 we can make it on time if we just walk a little faster than usual."

"Uh. .. is it time to go already?"

Akito woke up rubbing his eyes as he spoke in a sleepy voice.

"Mind telling me why you are the one who is sleeping?"

Akito stared at Horikita taking his time to analyze the question.

"Ah, leave that. Hurry up we are late."

"Wait, we are late?!"

After that, we ascended the ladder and moved towards the waterfall.

Chapter- 8 (Haywire)

Chapter- 8 (Haywire)

After trotting for a distance we met the dense forest filled with nearly impassable foliage. As we closed the gap between us and the Waterfall, the surrounding grew cooler. Perhaps the falling water is scattering small water droplets around in the air.

Just as the waterfall came into our sights, the moon decided to show up. I was utterly dumbfounded on reaching the spot.

(Source:https//url?sa=i =https%3A%2F%2F%2Fpin%2F858850591419335172%2F =AOvVaw2F-OSKlS-8VocvNfytCGMK =1607053530573000 =images =vfe =0CAIQjRxqFwoTCKDy3ojzsO0CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD)

The water sparkled and glistened once it was lit by the moonlight, it looked as if pearls emerged through the water as it flowed. One after another breathtaking view kept on startling me, apparently everyone was just as nonplussed as me since we stood there speechless for a minute.

"When you said you guys found a waterfall I did not guess it would look this aesthetic."

"Well, it did not look so cool in the scorching sun, believe me."

"You say there is a cave behind it?"

"Yes, we walk through the water to find it."

"Damn that sounds so cliché, but I never dreamed of doing it. Time to jump in."

With that Akito entered the cave, perhaps the water was not that cold after all. I did the same followed by Ayanokouji and Horikita.

Shortly after entering we revoked the rights to the waterfall as well. Once we were done we moved to the Treehouse, there was no rest for us here since the tree house itself would reset by 3:00 AM.

Ayanokouji was the one to guide us this time. Even with a flashlight in his hand I do not have any idea how he can tell the direction in a jungle where everything looks alike in the dark.

After an hour of walking in silence, Ayanokouji suddenly switched the flashlight off and crouched.

Some students with a torch in their hand moved towards the direction of the waterfall. The torch was made of a long stick with some burning material at the end, it hinted that there were people in the class who were adept to the wilderness.

In the dark the visibility had dropped to nearly zero, the moon was hidden again. Even if it was not, the dense canopy layer would not allow much light to reach the ground.

"I think this is a good chance we should take a look at the blue spot on this map."

"You are right."

Wait when did Ayanokouji reach Horikita?

"Very well, I will change our direction towards it. But I think that spot is occupied by Ryuuen, thus we need to maintain a low profile."

"You are not asking us to move without a flashlight are you?"

"That is not out of question right?"

I did not see his face, but I can still imagine his indifferent expression as he teased Horikita.

"Now that the three of us are here, where is Ichinose-san?"

Wait what? Akito was there as well?

"I am here." I whispered in a low voice.

They all crawled to me in silence.

"I heard the plan, let's do it. But close the flashlight when we are in danger, or else we will get lost if we move without a flashlight."

"Very well."

With a flashlight on we moved to the blue spot, eventually Ayanokouji turned back to check all of us. Once we were there he closed the flashlight at the minimum distance possible.

There were two small houses made of straw and mud opposite to each other, a small torch lit up on their walls. Most students would be asleep by now.

(Author's note: This is what it looks like, just imagine it at night in the woods. Source:https//url?sa=i =https%3A%2F%2F%2Ffree-photo-vwsoe =AOvVaw2tIFzbTLjvgm9HMtTdy_QS =1607166264596000 =images =vfe =0CAIQjRxqFwoTCMD10pOXtO0CFQAAAAAdAAAAABAD )

But still why to move so deep into the forest for a base camp? This spot surely was hidden by most classes as they would assume to find nothing useful beyond the unreasonably dense woods.

But Ryuuen Kakeru must have marked this from the cruise ship, it is a perfect base for him to stay hidden and protect the identity of the leader with ease while he schemes against other classes. Simply speaking it was a high risk, high reward condition.

"We should get moving, getting spotted here will do no favours to us."

On Horikita's command, we left their base camp alone and headed to the treehouse. Once we were done reckoning the rights there, we hurried back to the base camp.

At last I could rest now, the hut will get reset at nearly 7:30. Therefore, I can get some solid sleep after reclaiming our base camp again.

At the base camp I found everyone sleeping in their respective tents. Once I and Ayanokouji reclaimed the spot, we departed ways to our respective tents.

Horikita was waiting for me at the entrance as if about to show me something. I looked at her with furrowed eyebrows, but she just entered the tent. I followed her after removing my shoes. In the dark, I did not find anything unusual. But the sole of my legs felt a soft sensation.

On letting some light come in from the main panel of the tent, my eyes registered girls sleeping on inflated pillows and a mat spread on the ground to avoid the hard earth. A cordless fan powered by battery aired the tent silently.

"This... How?"

"Uh . . .Ichinose is that you?"

Karuizawa, who woke up on detecting our presence, was clearly familiar to these comforts.

"I don't remember the tent having a cordless fan or mat before I left, mind explaining it?"

Horikita demanded an explanation from Karuizawa.

"Ah, about that. Did you really think we would sleep on the hard earth while mosquitos sucked our blood? Get real Horikita."

"Does the boys tent have it as well?"

"No, they act like barbarians so there was no point in providing such things to them."

"So did you buy all this behind their backs?"

"Yes, once they all were asleep we contacted Chabashira-sensei and bought all this, don't worry we told Hirata once it was moved to the tent."

Apparently you can buy anything as an individual using class points, without telling anyone else. But it will be an uproar once the boys find out, perhaps following the same train of thought Hirata will also choose to keep quiet about this to avoid chaos.

"You do understand we need to sacrifice our comfort in order to get through this test right?"

"Don't sound like the barbarians sleeping outside, Horikita. If you really agree with them then go and sleep with them outside on the hard earth."

"You will come to regret it Karuizawa, you are just acting like a dead weight holding the class down."

"Oh please, just get out of here if you don't find this ethical and don't even think of telling the guys about this."

"Why make such decisions when you can't even hold your ground against them?"

"I did not make it alone, all girls came to this decision! Aargh dammit, just get out!"

With that multiple girls woke up at once, trying to grasp the situation that was suddenly put in front of them.

"Very well I will head out."

Horikita's pride did not allow her presence in this tent anymore. It is natural that she is displeased by the rest of the girls, it was not much tolerable by me either. While we travelled through the dense forest to harvest one point, girls of our class spent them without rhythm or rhyme in our absence.

"I will sleep outside as well."

"Why Ichinose-san? Sleep with us."

"No, that is okay Mii-chan. I need to talk to Horikita-san anyways."

"You two do whatever you want but don't you dare speak a word about this to boys."

"Your threats are not needed Karuizawa-san, unlike you, we do not plan on taking steps that would throw the unity of the class in a disarray."

"Whatever."

With that I left the tent, Horikita was resting under a tree using her backpack as a pillow. I sat beside her resting my back against the tree.

"We should just sleep in the second tent of the girls."

"I do consider it as an option, but even if my body finds comfort there my mind won't find the peace to sleep."

"Haha I think that is the reason I also plan on sleeping outside."

"Suit yourself."

I lied down beside her making a pillow out of my own backpack as well.

"Hey Horikita-san you know at first I never thought you would be so cooperative with us. But then you helped us in saving Sudou and then you accompany us in the search team, I must say we both have grown familiar."

"Don't get the wrong idea, Ichinose, I was just investigating the school system, by stroke of luck it helped you."

"But you still helped us on the island right?"

"Well if you don't choose your work yourself then someone else will end up choosing your work for you. I just wanted to avoid that so I came with you guys."

"I see but then why us?"

"To tell you the truth I consider it a mistake on the school's part for my allotment to Class D. I am sure there have been misevaluation of my abilities, but on the other hand I think that you are also a victim of the same mistake. You do have many redeeming qualities, even those that Hirata clearly lacks as a leader. That is why I chose you to be worthy enough of their support."

"Uh.. I see."

I lied beside her, trying to figure out the information she just threw at me. But I was already sleepy after lying down, before I could answer her I was already asleep.

When I woke up she was already gone, I sat up rubbing my eyes. Judging from the low intensity of sunlight the dawn had just hit, early risers were already doing their work to keep the camp functioning.

At some distance I saw Hirata. Horikita, Kushida and Karuizawa discussing something, perhaps it would be about the points they had just spent.

As I walked up to them to join the discussion, I noted Ayanokouji was also walking in their direction.

"Good morning, Ichinose-san." Hirata greeted me with a warm smile, but his eyes were worried.

"Good morning, Hirata-kun. What are you all talking about?"

As we talked Ayanokouji also joined us. Soon, we would need to reclaim the hut so apparently he approached us to remind us of that.

"The girls suggest to move out of the camp and take shelter in the cave you all had just discovered."

Hirata said with a worried expression. Why are they making such arbitrary requests suddenly?

"Huh? Why move there?"

" I think not only will us grant some peace and comfort living away from boys but also it would help the foraging team to cover a wider range of the forest."

"Your point is reasonable but you do understand that it will be a lot of labour to move the tents till there right? And you all will have to walk that distance twice a day to attend the roll call. On top of that everyone will be drenched in water every time to get in and out."

Karuizawa grew silent as I pointed out the difficulties of living there.

"Guess it is impossible after all." Hirata said in a relieved tone.

"But Ichinose-san you all will also have a secure place to sleep during nights." Kushida spoke up.

"We cannot rest at the cave, it takes approximately 2 hours to reach the tree house. So a secure place is not needed at the cave." Horikita shot down her concerns coldly.

"I see ..."

"Well we will soon need to leave for the hut, the timer will be reset at 7:30. After that we will have to race our way back here to attend the roll call."

I casually shifted the flow of conversation in another direction.

"Yeah it surely is hard for the search team. You all have to travel so much to earn each point."

"Haha no worries, at least reaching Class A won't be a dream after this test."

"Could everyone please gather around?!! We need to talk right now!"

All the heads turned towards Keisei Yukimura who was standing near the entrance of the girl's tent accompanied by Ike and some other boys.

"Hey! Get away from the girl's tent, you perverts."

Karuizawa who was clearly panicking yelled at the top of her voice. Ouch you do understand I am standing beside you right? My ears hurt.

(A/N: Okay don't beat the heck out of me in the comment section, Karuizawa did act like this in the starting volumes. Please patiently wait for her development.)

"I would say you walk here at once!"

Yukimura was clearly not in a good mood this morning. One by one, girls came out of their tent as our group also gathered around him.

"What are you doing here? Get away!"

Shinohara-san who had just woken up was also frantically trying to get the boys away from the tent.

"It is no use, Shinohara. We already know what is in those tents." Ike said with a grim expression.

"What?!!"

All the girls turned their eyes on me and Horikita. Wait like I did not tell them anything.

"This is simply unacceptable, you order pillows and mattresses for your comfort behind our backs. Hirata I demand justice right now." Yukimura said in a harsh tone.

"Shut up, four eyes! There is nothing like that in our tent."

Shinohara-san who had completely lost her cool was attacking Yukimura rapidly.

"Who told you about this?! Who is spreading these rumours? Horikita, you will pay for this." Karuizawa joined in Shinohara smoothly so that no one would notice.

All the girls gave us a suspicious look.

"Please stop lying, it just makes you all look worse. I have already checked the interior of the two tents the girls own."

It was too late to lie now, Yukimura had gained the forbidden knowledge himself.

"What?! How dare you peep into a girl's tent without permission?"

"You are the worst of all, scum."

"Pervert."

All the girls following Karuizawa ganged up on Yukimura.

"Can you guys stop acting all high and mighty after you spent points behind our back, you all yourself are the ones who are pulling the class down." Ike's tone had also grown rough, all the boys and girls stared at each other ready to kill.

"Hirata-kun! Get us out of here I can't live with such perverts anymore."

"B-But I don't think it is a good idea for boys and girls to live alone like this. Test has just started and we need to maintain our cohesion."

"You might be right but we can't live with such perverts and peeping toms, just get me away from them!"

This clearly was not going well, I myself cannot speak in such a situation since I was the one to convince Yukimura to buy the toilet in the first place. Now that his conditions are breached my words will fall on deaf ears even if I try.

"If they live away from us then who knows how many points they will spend when we are not around."

Guys were clearly not convinced to let the girls go this easily. As Yukimura shot another arrow against the girls.

"Ah! This guy is giving me a headache. Can you keep us away from this pervert Hirata?"

"Perhaps we will move your tents to a different location after all."

Hirata, who clearly understood there was no way the girls and guys could live under the same shelter anymore, took the right turn at the right time.

"What?!"

"I am sorry for this Yukimura, but I was the one who allowed them to order the goods. I promise to make sure that they do not spend another point in our absence."

Hirata lied in order to divide the blame, there was nothing he could have done when he was informed about the goods after they were ordered.

Chabashira-sensei who was observing us from a distance with an apathetic expression, received a call. In a few seconds she approached us, everyone who was arguing grew silent in anticipation of her motives.

"Kouenji Rokusuke has retired due to poor health, now under any condition he will not be allowed to return to the island. Your class will receive a 30 points penalty right now."

"What?!!"

"That monkey Kouenji!"

The fragile unity of our class received fatal blows one after another, everything that seemed peaceful by last night was now haywire.

"Let us leave for the hut, or we might not make it in time for the roll call."

Horikita's words snapped me out, we left the class in the disordered state to avoid any more loss of points.

Chapter- 9 (Incoming adversaries) (Rival strategies -1)

Chapter- 9 (Incoming adversaries) (Rival strategies -1)

(Author's note: This chapter is about the various strategies the rival classes are following.)

Kanzaki's POV

While students were enjoying the cruise named Speranza, we were asked to enjoy the 'significant scenery'. As I expected, even though the island appeared to be deserted it still had some human made pathway in it. As we circled around the island I spotted a small cove inlet down a cliff, apparently the inlet was not natural. Humans had tampered with it.

Once the shape of the special test became clearer I chose the cove inlet to be our base camp, but we improvised soon enough on finding the well as our base camp which happened to be on the path leading to the inlet.

I appointed Chihiro Shiranami as our leader, she is a shy girl and opens up to only selected people. Most of the classes won't even know her name. I asked everyone to refer to her as Yume Kobashi, an alias would not only keep the identity of the leader safe but also misguide the classes to a 50 point penalty.

"Now that the leader is decided, Yume I would like you to accompany me to a spot right away. Claiming it will provide us a boost in points."

We secured the cove inlet with ease, so the school had tinkered the island to make it mildly habitable for us.

On ascending the manually installed ladder I found a student waiting for me, he was Kaneda Satoru from Class C.

"Kanzaki, Ryuuen-san extends an offer to take down Class A and crush Class D together."

Hmm, what is that serpent scheming now?

"Why should I not crush Class C and take down Class A alone?"

"Because you can't take down Class A far to dream about crushing our Class. But Ryuuen-san did predict you might say something like this, he has asked you to meet him near the waterfall at the dusk of the second day if you want to crush Class A for good."

With that, the spectacled fox turned his back and started heading towards his camp hidden in the array of dark trees, I racked my brain, calculating the power both our Class combined will hold.

"Kaneda, where is this waterfall you speak of?"

"Your base is in that direction right?"

He pointed his index finger towards the direction of our base with a sly smile, I nodded slightly to concur with him.

"Very well, move North-West from there you will find it after a short walk."

"Let's see what your boss brings to the table."

"Indeed."

I visited the waterfall that day just to see if it might be a spot as well, although if it had been the case then Class C would have already. But apparently it was not a spot after all as I did not spot a device to claim the rights of exclusive possession.

(Author's note: Okay so I am going to skip to day 2 dusk for now, do not worry I will cover it from Ichinose's perspective as well)

Next day when I reached there it seemed as calm as usual, the sunset had painted the whole island orange. While I waited for Ryuuen there, some voices reached my ear from the direction of the waterfall.

Wait, that sounds like girls giggling, were nymphs real after all? On zeroing upon the waterfall covertly I discovered there was a cave hidden behind the crashing water, so the forest folk tales were not made up at the end of the day. At the other side of this waterfall a different world awaits me.

"Hey what are you doing?

I turned my head swiftly to find Kaneda standing behind me.

"You do hear some voices, right? Or am I hallucinating due to the heat?"

"Hahaha I understand your confusion, this is a spot claimed by Class D. For some reason the girls have split up to live here."

So it was a spot after all, how in the world did they even find the device?

"I see, is that a sign of disunity or are they scheming something?"

"No idea, for now let us head to our base, talking here would be risky."

I followed him into the verdant forest. After walking for an hour, I found Ryuuen standing with two other students. They seemed exceptionally well built, especially the tall black guy standing on his left.

"As Kaneda would have already mentioned I seek a partnership with you to crush Class A and Class D at once."

"That is easier said than done, tell me your plan then I will consider your offer."

He described me the whole plan, it was a well tailored strategy. You need to have an eye on nearly the whole island to catch such minute events and on top of that to formulate such underhanded plot , it can not be done by many.

My lips curled into a smile, even though it was well thought out the plan still had some probability of failing. Yet, it was a harmless gamble to make.

"I see, what do you want from me for all this?"

"Buy us goods worth 100 points, we do not plan on spending much of our points at the moment."

"Your plan sounds good on paper, I won't trade a point unless I have proof that you have succeeded."

"Very well, but for insurance I will have to ask you for goods of at least worth 50 points."

"And how do you plan to refund that amount to me if you fail?'

"I will give you the keycard of my class, that will not only give you 50 points but also throw us under the bus."

"Are you that confident in your plan?"

He stared back into my eyes, like a wolf determined to kill its prey. The feral vibes he gave off convinced me without any words.

"Very well, tell me what you want to order. It will be delivered to you by tonight."

Kaneda passed him a small sheet of paper.

"Take this, order the first half tonight. By the dusk of tomorrow, you will order the second half."

"One more thing." I spoke as I took the piece of paper from him.

"Yesterday night I received the leader's identity of Class A."

"I see. Is there proof?"

"Yes I have it, but what are you willing to offer me against it?"

"Class D leader's identity sounds good?"

"Do you have proof?"

"I will get it by dusk tomorrow."

"Hmm very well then we will progress our trade tomorrow depending on your results."

With that we turned our backs on each other and left.

--x--x--x--x--x--

Hashimoto's POV

Sakayanagi-san was right, the school did have a special test planned for us after all. At first I thought it was one of her jokes, but when she assembled her whole faction I knew it was not a joke.

Her only command was to take down Katsuragi's faction, now that we all have the knowledge of the rules, Kamuro would get the picture of the keycard soon enough. Once it is done we can sell it to other Class for the most profitable deal.

I walked towards the beach alone. Now that Katsuragi had already gone out claiming the spots he marked from the cruise ship, he would not allow anyone except his dog Yahiko with him.

He is so cautious at times that it almost seems like a unique illness, I am sure if our class remains under such a paranoid leader we are bound to fall to Class B who is just a hundred and fifty points below us.

That being said, Sakayanagi-san did order us to take help of Class B so that the Katsuragi faction can feel genuine fear of the class falling down under his leadership.

As I walked towards the beach a quirky individual caught my eyes. According to the intel he is on par with top Class A students when it comes to academics and athletics, on top of that there is a rumour going on that he is buying points from 3rd year students in exchange of real money after graduation.

It was Kouenji Rokusuke, this is a good chance to check if the rumours are true or not. We do have ample points to offer him for selling the name of his class leader, if I succeed then the Sakayanagi faction will gain more influence for bringing up a leader's name.

(Author's note: In the real LN as well the Sakayanagi faction offered Ayanokouji 200,000 for selling the leader's identity when they spotted him alone.)

"Did you lose your class, Kouenji?"

"It is a common courtesy to offer your own name before using that of others."

"It is Hashimoto Masayoshi. I have a good de-"

"Not that I care about your name much, Hashimoto-boy. Don't you see the beauty of the scene in front of you? Burn it into your eyes as I complement it with my presence."

Holding a normal conversation with him was never an option.

"I see, now may I ask you a question?"

I asked for permission this time. Well you need to adapt with time if you want to keep climbing.

"Go on Hashimoto-boy."

Ugh.

"Would you be willing to give the name of your Class leader if we offer you 200,000 points?"

He turned towards me, giving me a sharp glance, peering deep into my eyes.

"Hmm, we can't transfer points here. Do you plan to sign a memorandum?"

What? It worked so easily?

"Yeah sure, you will receive the points once we get back to the ship."

"Very well, I will tell you the identity of the one leading the common folks for 400,000 points."

Haha, I should get used to this.

"Oka-"

"I would ask you to increase the amount to 600,000 for a 30 points damage I can deliver to Class D."

Once he sensed I was affirmative of his conditions he did not even let me speak. So he does plan to leave the island after all.

"Buy me a digital camera right now, we meet here again at the dawn of next day Hashimoto-boy. You bring the memorandum I will bring you the leader's identity."

Why do I feel so out of control in this deal?

"Sure."

We walked to the staff members sitting at the beach and I bought him a camera with the points of Class A. After checking the camera twice he took some pics of him in it.

"It captures my beauty very well, I was missing my mirror after all."

I have a bad feeling that believing him is a mistake.

As planned he met me the next day at dawn and handed me the camera, once I handed him over the memorandum he took a leap into the sea and swam all the way to Speranza.

How will he convince the staff member of poor health when he just swam to the ship? Would the memorandum even be readable after getting wet in water?

I shook my head, trying to analyze him was a mistake I will take care to not repeat again.

Once I had the evidence I headed towards the base camp of Class B, telling him the identity of our leader would be enough. No need to tell him about Class D leader, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji.

Chapter- 10

Chapter- 10

We moved from the hut to the base swiftly in order to attend the roll call. Assuming the girls were going to leave the base camp, Horikita decided to bring the fishing rods which we found in the hut to the base camp, it was a sound decision to give it to the girls since they plan on moving to the waterfall so that they can catch some fishes in the river for food.

Shortly after the roll call was over, the girls packed their luggage to leave the base. The harmony we had gained by last night was in tatters, as Hirata gathered a team of boys to shift the tent to the next location.

He understood it well enough that keeping the two factions separate was more effective than trying to mediate between them at this point in time.

Although having the class split up in two camps voluntarily would have offered advantages, but our class was forced to split up due to internal conflict which rendered all of the advantages useless.

Our team left the base first in order to revoke the rights of the waterfall, we followed the river to reach the spot. I wonder how the girls will manage to come in and out of that wall of water to attend the roll call and other activities.

We relaxed a little in the cave waiting for our classmates before leaving for the tree house. Apparently the school was helping them move the toilet and a shower to the new spot.

I wished I could stay here to see how things proceeded, but if we don't leave for the tree house right now then it will be in a vulnerable position due to the fact that Ryuuen has his base near it.

We returned to the base camp near the river once we were done with the tree house.

The camp felt desolate without the girls playing around and foraging food.

Who was to blame for this? Was it the fault on girls' part to seek such comfort? Or were the boys acting too barbaric to save points? Was it the result of poor leadership I and Hirata exhibited? Does it even matter who did it? Nothing will be solved by finding the one to blame.

As I showered, I cooled down my brain, this surely was refreshing after getting drenched in sweat and river water so many times today. I analyzed the statistics of our class calmly.

We lost 30 points after Kouenji retired, I had missed a roll call that had cost us 5 points as well. The toilet cost us 20, while according to Hirata the food and water as a set was costing us 20 points per day even if we forage food. The total cost of our consumption has been reduced by nearly 50 points once we decided to rely on river water for drinking purposes.

The 4 spots we have been holding since yesterday are providing us 12 points per day. If we keep reclaiming the spots over and over again we will end up with more than 80 points by the end. Assuming that the things the girls bought are around 30 points and another 20 to 30 points lost in extra miscellaneous things, our total comes around to be around 200-210 if we successfully conceal the identity of our leader.

Having a clear picture of our standing in the test gave me a peace of mind. Once I had some fish and berries for lunch I took a short nap to replenish my strength.

The cycle of claiming the spots continued, and the girls returned to our base to attend roll call and have dinner. Both the parties maintained distance from each other while they ate and occasionally shot each other gazes filled with spite. The increasing heat didn't do help in cooling down their temper either. Now that I think about it the temperature really is getting unbearable, the clouds keep hovering above the island but have not rained yet.

Apparently Hirata had frustration piled up due to the tension in the air, as he ate alone trying to figure out a solution for getting the class out of the sorry state it was in. I would have preferred to join him, but at the moment I was caught up in different duties so he would need to hold down the base alone.

Once the roll call was over we continued our journey to keep collecting the bonus points throughout the night. Our group was mostly silent all along the journey partly since none of the other three were eager to spark a discussion or participate in one unless needed, but another reason for our silence was also the loss we had just suffered.

( Author's note: Just in case I lost you all, this is the morning of the third day.)

In the morning after a brief rest we were working again, as every 8 hour cycle passed my body felt more and more out of stamina, sadly I have no choice but to continue anyway.

In the afternoon we went back to revoke the rights of the waterfall at some distance from the rushing water, two girls sat on the earth chatting amiably as they fished the river for food.

"Hey! You guys got used to fishing already"

"Ichinose-san! How are you doing? We haven't had much chance to talk since you started roaming around the island."

Mii-chan ignored my remark casually. I noticed they were both drenched in water, perhaps this was the price to pay for coming in and out of the cave. Well we have been paying this entry fee everytime we retrieve this spot.

"Mii-chan she is earning points for us!"

Shinohara-san reminded Mii-chan of the real purpose of our not so fun island tours.

"Haha no problem it is fun to go around the island, how are you guys doing here?"

"Well we just get out to forage lunch and for roll calls, we move the shower out an hour before leaving for the roll call. So that everyone can stay tidy and once we reach back we move in and shower again."

"What about now? You guys are all wet."

"We will shower inside once Kushida-san and her team is back with the berries they found around here."

"Woah! You guys are doing well on your own."

As we spoke with each other chatting, a group of students approached us from a different direction we came from. On looking carefully it was Kanzaki, 5 more students accompanied him.

"Good afternoon Ichinose-san."

"Good afternoon Kanzaki-kun, how is your class doing?"

"We are doing just fine, it is hard to grow accustomed to such wilderness but we are trying our best to save as many points as possible."

"Haha, same here, we are also having a hard time getting used to this island too."

As we spoke, the team led by Kushida-san returned, they had collected berries and small tomatoes. It would be enough to make it through this afternoon for at least 10 people.

"Good afternoon Kanzaki-kun. How are you doing?"

I should have known they would already know each other since Kushida-san had a vast network of friends.

"I am doing well Kushida-san, you seem to have collected a lot of food for your class."

"Yeah I know right, this island is not completely lifeless after all."

The island instantly started to look better after hearing the words of Kushida-san, she has an extraordinary skill for persuasion.

"Oh is that Chihiro-san?! Hey there Chihiro-san."

A girl who was standing behind Kanzaki with other students waved back to Kushida. With some exceptions like Kouenji aside, it seems like she is acquainted with all the first year in this school.

Shortly after they were done talking we retrieved the waterfall again, time went by in a flash as we went on doing our work. The girls and guys met again at the dinner, it seemed like they were less hate towards each other when compared to yesterday, but the class still wasn't at a point where Hirata can stand up and deliver a motivational speech to unite them back, he would have understood by now that time was the best medicine for our class at the moment.

All four of us ate dinner together, we will need to leave soon, that's why its better to save time which is spent in gathering us all. We were almost done eating when a tiny rain droplet fell on my cheek.

"Huh?"

With an inquisitive look Horikita stared at the sky. It had started raining. The students wildly ran into the tents, all the girls got into one tent and turned back any guy who tried to get in it.

The four of us were getting drenched in water thrice a day so it was not a big deal for us. But the girls were new to this so it is understandable that they decided to avoid rainfall.

"Should we take shelter in the tents or move out to the hut?"

I asked the three standing beside me.

"I suggest we should take shelter in here, if anyone slips off the cliff then it won't be great. Neither for the class nor for them."

Ayanokouji spoke in a dark tone. That was enough for us to understand the level of threat which was posed by the shower.

I looked at Horikita and Akito, both of them nodded one by one.

We silently parted our ways to respective tents.

The girls teased Horikita a little when she took shelter in one of the tents but Horikita wasn't someone who would be affected by it.

The downpour only got more intense in the next hour, I was missing sleep as the tent was too packed to demand sleeping space. I and Mii-chan chatted with Shinohara who was at the other side of the tent. I still can't believe how we all fit in here, the boys however weren't as lucky. Ayanokouji, Akito and Hirata were already standing outside to provide others shelter, I would have offered them shelter in our tent if it would not make other girls uncomfortable.

No doubt they would welcome Hirata with ease, but then leaving Ayanokouji and Akito in the rain wouldn't be fair.

"Ichinose-san, at this rate the rights of the hut will be revoked in our absence."

"You are right, but what Ayanokouji said is also true. If one of us is unable to continue due to any injury then our class will lose 30 points."

The other girls grew silent, they seemed interested in how we operated.

"Very well."

Another hour passed then another, but the rain did not cease, I looked at the watch and it displayed 11:57, we were already late to claim the spot.

It seemed like some of the girls had fallen asleep with their back against the wall of the tent, while others slept on their laps. Some of them were still awake, even when you consider their dynamics with the boys, at the end of the day this would be a great camping experience for all of them.

I wish we had a camera to capture this scene, I wonder what kind of expression they would have made after looking at the picture.

Horikita-san was still awake, Hirata, Ayanokouji and Akito were still standing out in the rain. At this rate they will get sick.

"Hirata-kun, Ayanokouji-kun, Akito-kun come here, the girls are asleep."

On hearing my voice they all turned their heads and walked towards our tent. At first they were reluctant, but once Horikita intervened they obediently got in.

"Hey it is 12:15 already, the hut would be in danger right?" I spoke, while facing towards Ayanokouji.

"You are right, but I doubt any other class would try to risk it in such amidst such downpour."

"Yes, you have a point."

Around 1:10 the downpour simmered down, we decided to head out once it was feasible to move around the island. Hirata was asleep, probably the frustration which piled up due to the disunity of class is taking a toll on him. Even though the girls will be joyful on waking up next to a sleeping Hirata, the guys would be out for his blood soon.

"We should head out right now before other classes reach out to claim it."

"Yes, let us leave right now."

"We should wake the girls up, in view of the fact that even the waterfall might be reset by now it will be beneficial to have them there." Horikita proposed.

We all nodded in agreement and started waking up girls one by one, those who were resisting woke up at once when I told them about the sleeping Hirata lying with them in the same tent.

"Aww he is so cute when he sleeps!"

"~Nyaaa~ someone click a picture of this scenery."

It does not look like they will leave anytime soon.

"Once you are done adoring him, move out to the waterfall with a flashlight in haste. If we lose that spot then you all will have to live with the guys here."

Horikita cornered all the girls with her argument. And we all left the base camp to reclaim the lost destination.

It was a little cooler than before, but the slippery ground was slowing us down. On top of that it was night, therefore, it took us nearly an hour to reach the hut. By now the waterfall would be reset as well, but that spot would be guarded by the girls in there.

We descended the cliff carefully using the preinstalled ladder, the hut appeared untouched from the cliff. But on reaching there we found a tall student guarding the door. He wore sunglasses even when it was pitch dark without a flashlight.

I know him, he is a half-foreigner half-Japanese student, his name was Albert Yamada. The fact that he is standing here guarding the hut would signify that Class C owns the hut. But on looking at him carefully he is drenched in rainwater.

"Albert-kun, does your class occupy this hut?"

No answer. He stood there like a rock, more like a big boulder.

"If you are not the owner of this spot we ask you to move right now, and if you are the one owning this spot then give us the proof."

Horikita pressed Albert further. He did not even flinch an eyebrow.

"If you do not move then we will report it to school."

A threat was issued, this will be enough to move him. But... to our surprise he did not move.

We stood there in silence, thinking of ways to move him. The knowledge of who was the holder of this spot was important, because there was a good chance that the spot was still unclaimed.

If I have to guess then, he would have taken shelter from the downpour in this hut. Once he figured out that the hut did not belong to us he stayed back guarding it, that way if he was alone then his classmates would search him and discover this spot soon enough. On the other hand if he happened to be with a classmate then he would have hastened his way to the leader in order to claim this spot.

If we move now then they might get the spot, although some questions like 'How did he find the hut?' 'Is he really working alone?' still remained unanswered all four of us had probably come to the same conclusion of most probable theory.

"It is no use if he would not move, I think we should report to the school about this. There is no rule that states that you can monopolize a spot without proving your rights of exclusive possession." Horikita turned her back on him and started ascending the ladder.

It was a sound strategy, we can keep an eye on who reaches the hut if we stay hidden near the only ladder which leads to the spot and if we were not in his sight then anxiety would pile up in him.

I followed her while Ayanokouji and Akito followed shortly after that. On reaching the top a soothing gust of cool wind brushed my cheek, I turned behind to see the full moon which revealed itself after the rain clouds cleared out. The natural splendor of this forest still mesmerizes me, but this is no time to admire nature.

Ayanokouji reached the top soon, he stood there with the moon behind his head. Ah! Get me a camera already!

"I think we should keep an eye on the ladders for a while, if someone comes by then we will be able to deduce the identity of the leader."

"But the waterfall is also exposed to risk as it is also unclaimed, not to mention it is 2: 26 at the moment. The tree house will also get reset in half an hour."

"You are right, but if we can find the identity of the other class leader then it will be more of a gain than occupying the spot again, on top of that tree house is well hidden in the woods no one would ever find it without the map."

By the time Horikita and Ayanokouji discussed the next move, Akito had also joined in.

"Very well, you both hide here. I will explain the plan to Akito while we hide in the bushes over there, the more angles we can get the view the better."

"Agreed, let's get moving."

With that we departed, Ayanokouji went on explaining the plan to Akito. I and Horikita hid in the bushes, silently waiting for someone to show up. It was annoying to hide in the bushes since they were all wet from the previous downpour. Yet we endured it in hope of earning 50 points but even after an hour had passed no one showed up.

Ayanokouji came out of hiding, and beckoned us to follow him as he entered the dark array of woods. We shortly joined him with the flashlight, apparently he was walking towards the waterfall.

"Where is Akito?" Horikita was the one to spot the missing member of our camouflage.

"He said he needs to use the washroom urgently and he will meet us in the cave."

"I see, that is something that cannot be helped after all. All this constant walking on this island is taking a toll on our health. "

"Horikita-san I think we should pick up the pace, the treehouse is in danger."

With that we jogged to the waterfall at a safe speed since the earth was still slippery from the rain. On reaching there we walked in through the water without any second thought, I spotted Akito sitting alone resting his back against the wall of the cave. It was all dark since everyone was asleep already so it was easy to figure out the loner would be Akito, probably asking him about his condition would only embarrass him further.

Ayanokouji reclaimed the spot again and returned the card to me, without sparing a second he approached Akito. Looks like he really was concerned about him.

Once he was done talking he returned back to us.

"Akito says he needs a little rest. He will go to base camp and get some sleep. I think there will be only three of us for now."

"Indeed let us be done with this I also need some sleep." Horikita complained. She has a point that we missed out on sleeping because of the unforeseen rainfall.

But another upset was waiting for us in the tree house. On reaching the tree house we discovered it had been claimed by Class C. According to the timer the spot had been claimed just after the rights were revoked.

"So we were played by them, they had already executed the operation in the rain. They stalled us using Albert, using the benefit of doubt against us." Horikita recited her deductions in a frustrated tone.

"There is no use staying here, if we get spotted then it will only work against us."

"Very well, at least I will get some sleep now."

Deep down all of us were having this frustration, to walk so much distance just to earn a point was simply unreasonable. We climbed down the ladder lethargically, our motivations were dulled.

Once we reached the base camp we slept soundly after revoking the right of the river because in the morning no hut would be there for us to reclaim. Disguised as a curse it was still a blessing to our health that we lost two spots, deep down I knew that this feeling of comfort was wrong but my head accepted it as my body succumbed to the pleasure derived from having a sound sleep.

Chapter- 11

Chapter- 11 (Execution) (Rival strategies- 2)

(Author's note: As the title says this chapter is the execution of Ryuuen's plans. And the progress of his deals with Kanzaki.)

Ibuki's POV (3rd day morning)

Ryuuen, Albert and Kaneda have been patrolling the whole island for the last day, to my surprise their labours did bear fruit. They had found his target and Ryuuen had formulated the method.

According to him, on proceeding a little further we will discover a small colony of shrubs and bushes planted by the school. Three students of Class A are harvesting the berries from the mini plantation two times a day, they always collect berries in two separate clothes; one big one for their class and a small one from which they would enjoy eating without sharing it with other classmates. As deduced by Kaneda they will be done gathering all the berries by today evening after a total of six trips.

We had also found berries that looked identical to the ones they are foraging, hanging on small shrubs deep in the forest where we resided, but according to Kaneda the berries we found were poisonous; not enough to kill someone but to cause gastrointestinal distress and weakness, enough to make students unable to continue the test.

(Author's note: this is what they look like, pretty hard to distinguish unless you know about them beforehand.)

You might have guessed it by now, today morning when they return to forage the berries again I will mix the poisonous berries in their secret meal, while this blockhead Ishizaki grabs their attention. If things go right then Class A will lose 90 points by tonight.

It was Ryuuen who devised this strategy, he wanted to poison the whole class but we did not have enough berries to do that and it would have failed if someone from their class spotted out the poisonous ones before they ate them.

All in all this was the result of many events, if Ryuuen would have been a little late to find them then this plot would have stayed buried in the sands of time , if Kaneda had not found the poisonous berries then there was no base for this plan. If we fail to replace the berries covertly then it all would have been for a naught.

That guy Ryuuen has a smart head on his shoulder, it would be great if a little consideration for others slipped into his head someday. But for now he was leading us better than anyone else could.

"It is all up to you now, Ibuki. Don't mess up."

"Shut up. Just do your work correctly."

We departed quietly after that and hid in the bushes waiting for our prey. Shortly after that the three students arrived, chatting amiably with each other. Soon they will chat with each other on Speranza.

Once they were halfway done collecting the fruits, I signaled Ishizaki to initiate the first move. He approached them naturally and started picking berries like a small girl. On spotting him taking the berries the three guys moved in to interrogate him, not that they had any rights over this place but still Ishizaki looked so stupid they were going to try scaring him off.

This was my chance, I came out of my hiding while all of them were focused on the blockhead. Slowly and steadily I crept near the berries which laid on the cloth placed on ground, I skillfully took out 10 berries and replaced them with the new ones.

I fled the scene in haste once I was done, and hid behind the tree to make sure they ate it. Ishizaki on noticing that I had settled my part left the scene once he was done talking to the students.

Within the next few minutes they foraged the next batch of berries and sat down under a tree to have their hard earned reward. Humans tend to hide food they get from others so they can get more of it, this survival test had triggered the primal instincts of the students on a small level.

They all ate the deadly doppelganger I slipped in their meal. I left the scene stealthy when I was sure they had consumed all of the berries. Now the deal with Class B will take off by dusk.

Ryueen's POV (The dusk of 3rd day)

Ibuki and Ishizaki have executed their part well, according to the lowlifes spying Class A those students gave up and retired around the afternoon. It was dusk already, that means Kanzaki would be waiting for me to progress the rest of our deal. But making people wait is one of my favourite hobbies, so I will leave after an hour.

After an hour and half, Kanzaki himself came to my door.

"Come in."

Kukuku he looks so pissed off, yet he is trying his best to conceal it.

"Now that I have delivered the damage worth 90 points to Class A, I would like you to buy me the rest of the goods on the list."

"Very well, I am still amazed that your underhanded plan worked. You will receive the things you asked for by midnight."

"Good."

"You said you will offer me the leader's identity of Class D in exchange for that of Class A. Have you obtained the proof yet?"

"That will have to wait a little. I will exchange the names once I have the proof."

"I will be leaving then, there is nothing left to discuss at the moment."

With that the little toy left, apparently he got a whiff of my intentions to play with him.

The night welcomed a rainstorm, with the help of Class B I snatched away the two spots from Class D. Kanzaki claimed the hut amidst the storm, once he was done I sent Albert and Kaneda to confuse the monkeys of the defective class so that Ibuki would have her privacy while she claimed the treehouse.

It all went as planned, accordingly I obtained the identity of the leader of apes as well by the 5th day and traded it for Class A leader identity with Kanzaki. Class D was demolished, I can't wait to see the expression Suzune and Honami will make when the results are announced.

Chapter- 12

Chapter- 12 (The renegade among us)

On the third day near midnight we had lost two spots that our class owned, we had been able to derive only half of the benefits a spot offered. This was an absolute failure on our part, although on the bright side our team got some rest from the constant travelling.

In the morning I explained to Hirata the whole situation, he did not seem that disappointed. Apparently he had noticed the toll it took on our team members to get four points every 8 hours.

When the girls returned for the morning roll call he announced the loss our class had suffered last night, but to my surprise everyone thanked us with a warm smile for our hard work, although there were some who were displeased on finding that out yet they did not speak anything among the majority that supported us.

The girls and guys grew calmer towards each other, seemingly time was the only medicine for them after all. Without any eye opening speech from Hirata the harmony was gradually returning, not that the loss we had suffered was negated yet not many cared about it at this point. A feeling of content budded in my heart, this all was not that bad after all.

After breakfast, Hirata grabbed everyone's attention to make an announcement.

"Everyone I am going to lay out the pattern of expenditure of points this week and also the amount of points we are left with. Those who are interested please form a circle."

The girls immediately formed a circle around him as guys joined with a slight delay, they were still a bit reluctant to make up with the girls yet I guess.

"Kouenji's retirement and the one time Ichinose missed the roll call are the only penalties our class has received till now, that adds up to 35 points." Hirata started with the loss we have suffered.

"Food and water combined were supposed to be consuming 20 points per day in exchange of two meals for the whole class, that would add up to 120 points but because we had decided to utilize river water for drinking purposes 50 points have been saved out of those 120 points. On top of that if we make it without food for the last day then we can save an additional 10 points."

He continued by adding food and water to the list.

"The toilet cost us 20 points and the extra stuff the girls ordered was worth 30 points."

Hirata took a pause after that, in that brief moment the bitterness returned to the eyes of the guys who were about to forget it. Not only did girls buy comfort behind our back but also took the toilet we had bought with 20 points with them to the waterfall. It would naturally leave a foul taste in the mouth on remembering it.

Why would Hirata throw the girls under the bus suddenly?

"I understand everyone is displeased by the fact that girls spent points without any prior announcement, but after they moved to the cave they have been foraging food at a higher rate than us. They substituted one meal of the day with the food they gather and only take up half of the meal we usually do, that is if you have noticed. Neither is trading comfort for food a wise choice nor are they saving enough points to earn back what they have spent, but at the moment we all should respect their resolve to correct their mistakes after realizing it."

All the girls kept their heads low and listened to Hirata silently, it seems so that at one point they had realized that what they did was not right. Some looked at the boys with upturned eyes while others still not willing to yield to that extent just averted their gaze. After a moment of awkward silence the boys loosened up before the charms of the girls.

"Very well, we should continue the count. It seems like we are making progress." Yukimura said in a gentle tone.

"Lastly, the spots that our search team claimed the first night was supposed to provide us nearly 80 points in total. But due to the unforeseen rainfall last night we ended up losing two spots, so the points we will get now is nearly 60."

"That is a decent amount, we would not have gained 60 points any other way."

"Now the last thing to do is hide the identity of the leader successfully, if we manage to do that then we can end up with nearly 185 to 195 points. Even Class A did not see such growth last month."

Everyone was content with Hirata's explanation, it was a winning situation for the Class. The girls continued to reside in the cave so that they could cut back some more points on food, as the 4th and 5th day passed peacefully.

We had a nice experience camping with both the parties from time to time, I helped Kushida-san and her friends gather berries and sometimes did some fishing with Mii-chan and Shinohara-san.

All in all, I had a fulfilling vacation with my friends.

However, once the roll call ended at night of the 6th day, Hirata approached me with a worried expression on his face.

"Ichinose-san, can you come to the waterfall today at midnight? I want to talk to you about something very important."

Wait . ...

"And also if you can please ask Horikita-san to come in as well then it would be great."

Phew, what could it be that he is not willing to tell me here?

"I will do that Hirata, although we will also bring Ayanokouji-kun since he is the leader he will have to reach the waterfall at that time anyways."

After a moment of thought, Hirata agreed.

"Thank you Ichinose-san. Let us meet at midnight."

I was not able to sleep, as it kept bugging me what Hirata was about to tell me. At 11:00 I approached Horikita and told her about what Hirata said. It seems like she was not much pleased to hear his name, perhaps this was the reason Hirata had asked me to call her instead of doing it himself.

"Very well, let us take Ayanokouji and leave."

Once Ayanokouji joined us we left for the waterfall with a lot of time in hand. Upon reaching there Hirata was waiting for us near the entrance, it was a blind spot with respect to the entrance itself so it appeared as if he was hiding from the girls in the cave.

Shortly after meeting us he asked us to follow him into the forest quietly, without a flashlight we walked for a minute. There, we found a student already waiting for us, in the dark the face was not visible.

"Two days ago, Karuizawa-san had found something that might prove to be trouble for us."

"Yes, but by yesterday it was gone. Only a few things remain." That voice was of Karuizawa. What does she want to show us at the middle of the night?

Hirata crouched down and after digging the soil a little he took out a flashlight and a walkie talkie.

"According to her, there was also a digital camera buried in here which had a picture of the keycard of our class."

"Wait but I had the keycard all along with me, I am sure no one else had it except Ayanokouji."

We all turned our gaze towards Ayanokouji.

"I do not have any memory of buying any of these things or clicking a picture of a keycard with a camera."

"I also think it was not Ayanokouji, he has been with us this whole time and Ichinose is the one who carries the keycard most of the time."

"Then who did it?"

"More importantly, why did you not tell us immediately?!" Horikita who was clearly in a state of anger right now growled at Karuizawa in a low voice.

"I-I was about to tell you when I found out but when I checked it at night it was gone, so I was not sure if I should tell anyone, it felt like the camera was never there, I-"

"Horikita-san she told me about this today morning, it is understandable that anyone would panic in such a situation."

"And why are you telling us about this at night?"

"Because I was searching myself for someone who might have a camera on them, but I did not find anyone."

Apparently before contacting us Hirata had done his share of investigation. After a brief moment of silence Horikita spoke up again.

"I think the identity of the leader has already been leaked to some other class, but it is unlikely that someone from another class would be able to take a pic of the keycard. Apparently someone from our class had done this."

Horikita said what no one was trying to admit, she was not the one to sugarcoat anything or hesitate to admit the truth at any point.

"How did you find it Karuizawa-san?"

"On the morning of the fourth day I went out with the other girls to gather berries, since I went out with Kushida's team I was returning alone. Just then I tripped and fell on the ground, the berries were scattered all around. As I picked them up I came across this spot where the earth appeared as if it had been dug before, on digging up I found a camera, a walkie talkie and a flashlight in it. The camera had a picture of a green card with Ayanokouji Kiyotaka printed on it, I saw a finger of the hand holding it. But by the next time I came to check it, the camera was missing from the stack."

Karuizawa recited the whole story in one breath, as if she had rehearsed it before. My heart froze on realizing I was the one holding the card all along. It was apparent to me but the consequences just dawned on me right now.

"We would have done something if you had told us before."

"I did not trust anyone beside Hirata on this matter, you guys were the most suspicious since you had the keycard with you all the time."

Her suspicion was natural, I have no idea when the keycard was stolen from me. But the fact did not change that someone had supplied the other class about the identity of our leader, if the class having the evidence sends it to other classes then we might as well lose nearly 100 points. It was the end of our dream of Class A now, we will always be in Class D once the other Classes leave us in dust once the test ends.

"Can you all do anything about this?"

"We should tell this to the class and find the traitor as soon as possible." Horikita proposed.

"That would only fuel chaos, that way it will be easier for the culprit to hide." Hirata was right, our class had just made up from the last fight between boys and girls. If we tell them about this then there is no telling if students will ever believe each other.

"So you say we sit here silently as we lose points?"

Horikita's tone grew colder. This agony was too much for us to handle, after everything we went through this was not the outcome that drove us so far.

After a long silence Horikita turned her back and left the meeting without uttering another word, there was nothing we could do to solve this mess. Our only choice was to wait as the results approached us to crush our dreams.

Shortly we returned to the base after revoking the waterfall, as we walked I imagined the salty expression everyone will make when they hear the results, such confusion they all will experience due to my carelessness.

No one there pointed it out, but it was all my fault to begin with. I was the one who took responsibility for the card in the first place. I will distribute the private points I get next month in the class equally. I do not deserve to own any points after this mistake, after all one can survive without points too.

I am adept with that kind of lifestyle already so I was the one who would be least affected by poverty.

We reached the camp in heavy silence, before departing Horikita turned to me and said.

"This is a result of your carelessness."

With that both of them left me, I needed some time to get through with all this. Should I just run away from this island and take an expulsion letter? No, the world outside this school is not so different after all. I guess we all will face the consequences anyways.

Horikita you were wrong, my evaluation was done correctly, I was a defective human who belonged to the lowest level of the society.

I tried to sleep, but the heaviness of my heart would not let me. I tried to cry but the promise I made to my sister won't let me. I just sat on the grass staring at the cloudy sky, I felt so empty.

A little by little a dim blue brightness took over the darkness, I was still there as the dawn was about to hit.

There was the sound of footsteps, I turned towards the direction of the faint footsteps and discovered Horikita enveloped in the shadows.. Perhaps she wanted to give me a thorough verbal beatdown that I deserved.

"I have a plan to get out of this mess." I did not believe my ears at first, there is no way she would joke at a time like this.

"W-wait really?!"

"Yes, it will take all of us. Me, you, Hirata, Ayanokouji and Karuizawa. I want you to take the lead of executing this plan."

"Are you serious? What is your strategy? Tell me!"

"Calm down and hear me out."

She explained to me her strategy, I knew she was a sharp student but not this smart. Perhaps her allotment was a mistake in Class D, I doubt even anyone of Class A could think of such a strategy.

She was right for this strategy to succeed. We needed to work as a team. But it was bound to work anyways as long as we did our task correctly. This was the strategy to use the disunity of class as a weapon, I wonder how she figured out such a loophole.

As she explained it to Hirata who did the same with Karuizawa and our plan was ready after some adjustments.

The last day was a little hard since we only consumed the foraged food, but we endured it anyways.

At 8:00 sharp, we were asked to assemble at the beach from where this all began. As expected Ryuuen approached me and Horikita as our class stood beside each other.

"I have been looking for the two of you, to think I would find both of you together. Suzune I have been dreaming to squeeze your bottom."

"Keep your vulgar thoughts to yourself. And do not use my first name without my permission."

Such foul language, it is painful just to hear him speaking.

"Don't feel lonely Ichinose, once I am done with Suzune I will warm you up as well."

"I am good, please skip that part."

"Kukuku you have nice humor, just like a lady should have."

"Over this past week, we, your teachers, have closely watched your

efforts in this special test. There were some students who took on the

challenge honestly, head-on. There were some who devised schemes to tackle the test. Many things have happened, but overall, the test results were splendid. Good work."

Fortunately Mashima-sensei took the reins of our conversation. Now is my chance.

"Your class did not occupy many spots, I don't see how you all would score a decent amount of points until you survived the week on insects and fruits living under that small straw house dripping with water under the rain." I would never say anything like this, but this was Ryuuen. This is his language.

"Heh heh heh. Don't be hasty, perhaps you have forgotten the additional rules of this test."

"Are you saying you are going to guess the leader of a class?"

"Spot on, Ichinose. Not only one but two classes and your monkey class is one of them."

"Haha like you will ever get the right name of the leader."

"Ayanokouji Kiyotaka."

A smile appeared on my face, so there was no traitor in our class after all. I looked at Horikita who nodded at me.

"You are wro-"

"Ayanokouji Kiyotaka was your previous leader, but after he retired Akito Miyake was made the new leader. Do not worry I have written the name of the latter one. Other classes have also filled up that name."

My heart froze. How did he find out that name?!

"Kukuku you two should look at your faces."

My expression was of shock, I averted my gaze and my eyes met with those of the traitor.

Chapter- 13

Chapter- 13 (Horikita's POV)

(Author's note: This is Horikita's POV, when they are returning to the base camp after Hirata and Karuizawa told them about the buried stuff.)

It was done, unease that just left me this morning was back with the results. Our leader's identity has been leaked to other classes. But the part that annoys me the most is that it is most probably one of our classmates, one of them had sold our class for some class points.

Here the fault is not of anyone else other than Ichinose for mishandling the keycard, we have no grounds to scold Karuizawa for the late reveal of this incident. She is the only reason we even came across its existence in the first place.

If it wasn't Ichinose, I would have berated the cardholder mercilessly. But deep down I acknowledged her abilities equal to mine, she was the only reason I complied with Hirata even a little.

When we reached the base camp my patience reached its limit.

"This is a result of your carelessness."

I turned back and blurted those words. After a brief moment of silence I left the scene, someone needed to say it out loud. She needs to understand that we will never reach Class A after this because of her fault.

I threw my bag under a tree and went into the forest. I need some peace to clear my head. After taking a stroll, I returned to the base, Ichinose was still sitting on the earth like a rock. I turned my head to find Ayanokouji sitting at the entrance of the boy's tent.

Wait. . .. That guy . .. He might come up with something if what Chabashira-sensei said was true. After thinking a lot I had deduced that Yamauchi had not obtained the recording himself after all, perhaps someone gave it to him. No one else fits in except this guy who would like to keep his profile low at all costs.

I would have doubted that he was special even if Chabashira-sensei repeated it a thousand times that he was special. But . . . my brother. When Ayanokouji fought with him he stated it clearly that Ayanokouji had piqued his interest. This is enough to convince me that he is special, but can he get the class out of this mess?

(Author's note: Yes, Ayanokouji did save Horikita from Manabu like it happened in LN. Since that time period was covered by Ichinose's POV it was not written.)

With my heart filled with doubt and hope I approached the man who loved peace and tranquility above all.

"Ayanokouji, how do you plan to get our class out of this predicament?"

"I don't have any plans, this is a checkmate."

"I know you do not want to help us reach Class A, but if things keep going like this you will starve as well while the traitor keeps draining our points every time."

"Why do you even think that I can help you? I just said there is no way out of this."

"I will tell you this; Chabashira-sensei have leaked information about you. I know you are more capable than you try to look."

He looked into my eyes, after a brief moment of silence he spoke.

"Were you really convinced by what sensei said? You know she likes playing around."

"Not only her, even the student council president acknowledged you. That is enough for me to deny your claims of being average."

I looked back into his eyes, he just stood up and started walking. Unconsciously I followed him, once we were deep in the woods he stopped and leaned on a tree.

"Out of all the arguments you just stated, only one of them is correct. It is true I do not want to reach Class A, but on the other hand I do not want to starve the rest of my school life either. Thus I will help you to catch the traitor under two conditions."

His tone was still the same, indifferent and lifeless. But the words coming out of that mouth made a different impact than usual.

"What are your conditions?"

"First, I want you to propose the plan I am going to explain under your name. Second, do not pry any further into my past."

So he plans on using me as a false face to mask himself, perhaps he has been doing it even before I realized it. He was the one to hand Yamauchi the recording after all, then he used us to take arms against Class C. I can't say I am pleased from deducing this fact, but what choice do I have?

"So what do you say?" his words snapped me out of my thoughts.

"I agree. What is your plan?"

"We will change the leader in the morning, that will get us out of the immediate danger hovering over us."

"But once an appointed leader can't be changed, how do you plan on changing the leader?"

"The leader can not be changed without a suitable justification, my failing health will qualify as one."

?

"You seem alright to me."

"I have been skipping meals and avoiding sleep since the first day, just in case I needed to change the leader if something like this comes up. Right now I am at a point where I can retire if I want and I can continue if I do not, the school has no rights to deny my request if my heart rate reaches below the prescribed level."

"I don't even have words, since when have you been planning this."

"I had planned to retire without telling anyone about this, but smoking out the traitor takes priority at the moment."

And for that I was the best option, since I already knew about him more than any student there would not have been much loss to reveal his plans to me if it helped in catching the turncoat.

"I understand, but how would this help in catching the traitor?"

"We will tell the name of the new leader to the class."

"That would just invite the danger back to us."

"I know, to avoid that we will give different names of the leaders to the class."

Wait that might work out.

"But sooner or later classmates will discuss with each other and find out."

"You are right, class will be divided into four factions. Two on the girl's side and two on the boy's side. The close friends will be informed about the same name, and since it will be the last day they won't have much time to discuss it."

"I see, and what are those four factions?"

"On the girl's side one led by Karuizawa and another led by Kushida, while on boy's side one led by Hirata and the one not led by him. Ask Ichinose to convince Hirata for this plan, and as per our condition introduce this under your name."

This man .. . . .

"I see, if Hirata and Karuizawa asks everyone not to talk about the leader, then it will at least take a day for them to break the rule."

He nodded apathetically.

"I see so what are the names of leaders we should introduce?"

"You will tell Ichinose that you are the leader, and ask her to lie to Hirata informing him that Ichinose is the leader. In a similar pattern, Ichinose will ask Hirata to lie to Karuizawa, so he will tell her that Yukimura is the leader. Karuizawa will pass on the same leader's name to her faction and will order them to keep quiet about it at any cost. In the meantime Hirata will notify Kushida-san and her friends the leader's identity as Akito Miyake. On the guys side we will introduce the two leader's identity as Mei-yu and Haruka Hasebe, since both of them are not so popular guys will not care."

That was a complex strategy, but it can work out.

"So you plan on making me the leader? You put a lot of faith on me."

"You will not be the leader."

"W-wait you said we will tell Ichinose that I am the leader."

"She will also be told the wrong name."

"But why? She is not the traitor."

"What evidence do you have? She is the most probable candidate since it is easiest for her to get the card."

Do you want to say you don't believe even her?

"Will you tell me the real name of the leader?"

"Yes, you will have to get the new keycard after I retire."

"And why do you believe me?"

"Because you are not the traitor."

"What is your base of saying that?" I threw his question back at him.

"Why would you try to find the traitor so hard if you were the one? And above all, if you knew what I could do, you would never approach me unless you wanted to be caught."

".."

"Okay who will be the new leader?"

"Sakura Airi. You do not need to reclaim the waterfall again as Hirata will convince everyone this morning to live together for the last day."

"And what about the river?"

"Send the fake leaders Ichinose, Akito and Yukimura on a foraging mission. Once Yukimura is gone no one among the boys will notice if the spot is claimed on time by the right person or not, similarly girls have no interest in who reclaims the base camp either."

"That looks like a lot of work."

"You do want to get out of this right?"

"I will do what you said, I assume you will ask me and Ichinose to lure Ryuuen into revealing the name he exposed as the leader right?"

"Yes, that is the end of the strategy. Together you, Ichinose, Hirata and Karuizawa can do it."

"Don't speak as if you have trust on us."

"I have provided you with the solution, as agreed to follow the conditions I put up obediently."

After giving him a slight nod I left him as he stood alone in the woods and approached Ichinose with a heart brimming with confidence.

Chapter- 14

Chapter- 14 (Kushida's POV)

Ryuuen Kakeru, it is easy to spot that he is different from others. But what stood out the most was his approach to crush his enemies. But just when he was about to pulverize Sudou.. . the useless goddesses saved him again.

Those bitches have made a deadly enemy, and what was the old saying again? 'The enemy of your enemy is your friend.'

On the cruise ship I made contact with Ryuuen and struck a deal with the devil. Ichinose and Horikita I will make sure you both don't escape him this time.

The perfect opportunity knocked our door when the special exam came into the picture of the tranquil summer vacation. That bitch Ichinose got the class four spots on the first night, and tried to look cool. But I had already made my plans, at evening Ryuuen had met me and given the command to gain the identity of Class D leader.

When Ichinose said about the waterfall spot, I decided to split the boys and girls so that I could operate closer to the Class C base. At first I tried to let them split up with good intentions, but Ichinose ruined that.

I had a plan B, although I did not want to use it.

"Yukimura-kun, can come to the forest with me for a little? I want to talk to you about something alone."

"Huh? What do you want?"

"I can't tell here."

Once we were in the forest alone I revealed what girls had purchased last night behind his back. As expected he was furious, but to make sure that my name is safe I asked him to check the tents and keep my name hidden at any cost.

It worked just as planned, the girls and guys quarreled until both the sides were about to collapse, Hirata and the others had no choice but to split them until their anger cooled down.

There I met Ryuuen again, he gave me a flashlight, a walkie talkie and a camera to gain evidence and supply it.

Stealing the card from Ichinose was a piece of cake, she slept like a rock due to the fatigue. Everyone would have blamed her and Horikita for leaking the identity. I am having too much fun doing this.

I hid the camera, flashlight and walkie talkie in the earth a little far from the waterfall. On the night of the fifth day I supplied Ryuuen the identity of our leader.

It was done, Class D will be in ruins when the test ends. And everyone will blame Horikita and Ichinose for this.

It all was going according to plan, apparently by the sixth day, time had healed the wound I left on the class. Hirata asked the girls to move back with the boys for the last day and all of them agreed, this is what I hate the most about them. They have a fight and forget about it.

No, when you make an enemy, he or she will be your enemy until one of you is destroyed.

Karuizawa and her friends moved out before us, and Hirata came back to help us carry luggage. But.. he also had an announcement to make.

"Everyone, this might come as a shock to you all. Ayanokouji has retired due to poor health, we have thought a lot and appointed a new leader."

"Whhat?! That means we lost 30 points!"

"That guy can't bear it for the last day! Argh I hate weaklings like him."

Girls started making a fuss about it, but more importantly the leader has been replaced. I need to tell Ryuuen the new name before it is too late.

Hirata walked away from everyone to gather the leftover luggage, once he was done perched the bag on his back and started to leave. I approached him as he was away from everyone.

"By the way, who is the new leader, Hirata-kun?"

"I will tell you all together when we walk to the base, it is better to avoid talking about the new leader's name as much as possible."

"Okay if you are afraid of spies whisper it in my ear."

With a warm smile Hirata whispered the name Akito Miyake in my ears. I see so another loner was appointed as the leader huh?

"Oh I see, that was a smart choice."

After that he went through the wall of water, he said he will say the name of the leader when everyone is walking to the river, right? I will need some evidence for Ryuuen to make him believe in the name of the new leader.

After Hirata left the girls started leaving behind him as well, I sneaked out of the line and fetched the walkie talkie hastily. I connected it with the Ryuuen, talking about devil timing he picked up in one ring.

"I have something important to convey, listen carefully and don't make any sound for the next 30 minutes."

"Kukuku very well, let's see."

I put the walkie talkie in the pocket of my jersey so that it would still catch the sounds and joined Hirata and the other girls. After some random talk at last Mii-chan raised the question I have been waiting for.

"Hirata-kun, you said the leader was replaced right? Who is the new leader?"

"I was going to get to that part, but in the middle of the forest we might be spied on so let us form a circle."

Everyone obeyed Hirata and performed the old ritual.

"After thinking a lot Akito Miyake was appointed as the new leader."

"Nice, who is that guy by the way?"

The girls apparently did not even remember his face.

"More importantly, I would like you all to not discuss this at all. Since it is the ending phase of the test, the other classes will frantically search for the leader. They would even be ready to miss a student roll call if it meant to discover the identity of our leader at this point. So please be careful."

Hirata issued the warning, he had a point that other classes are trying their best to find the leader, but they have planned it from the beginning of the test.

The name was successfully passed to Ryuuen, my work here is done. Phew, it was a close call, but now I just need to sit back and enjoy it.

Chapter- 15

Chapter- 15 (Ayanokouji)

I returned to the ship one morning of the sixth day, Chabashira-sensei wore a thin smile on spotting me. Perhaps she was content that I had obeyed her orders to help Class D rise.

I walked past her without saying a word, she was not someone I would find worthy of my time. Soon, she will regret using me more than anything in her life.

Once the doctor examined me, he prescribed me a little bedrest and some nutritious food. I skipped the bedrest and went to the luxury restaurant for food.

There I found a familiar character, it was Kouenji Rokusuke. He shot me a sharp look, flashing his white tooth at me. It made me uncomfortable, since he was taking much more interest in me than usual. But fortunately, that was the end of it, he averted his attention back to his food.

After a fulfilling meal the drowsiness kicked in from all the fatigue that had piled up last week. I went back towards the room I had been assigned when we got onboard.

The Class A students were also roaming around the ship, they did not look that depressed to me. Perhaps they did enjoy the luxury of the ship enough to such extent that they forgot about their comrades grinding on the deserted island.

I slept for the next 13 hours like a dead corpse, once I was awake the hunger was back. I ate another round of the five star meal Speranza offered, my recovery was nearly complete. This had been a bumpy ride.

The next morning I sat in my room, where the television was broadcasting the result. Numerous drones captured the scene with various angles so it was easy to see what was happening.

Mashima-sensei's voice sounded through the megaphone.

"Now, we will announce the rankings. The lowest class is Class A, with zero points."

So Class B and Class C did form an alliance after all to crush Class A and Class D. I can already see Class A students circling Katsuragi, hounding him for an explanation.

"Next in third place is Class B with 79 points. Coming second place is Class C with 189 points."

A commotion broke out, such unexpected results rankings and total points took the crowd by surprise. Not only was the gap between second and third place gigantic, but it also meant that our Class was at first place with even more points.

"And then Class D.. ."

After a small pause Mashima-sensei continued.

" .. . has come in first with 271 points. This concludes the announcement."

All of the students, save Hirata, were surprised. Although he was in the know, still he was wearing a cheerful smile. Even Horikita and Ichinose were unaware of the reason behind the sudden increase in points.

Class D students yelled so loud in sync that it was audible till my room, I would have gone to welcome them. But since I am supposed to be ill, I went to the theatre instead.

The play was related to Greek mythology, it portrayed the life of the mischievous Greek God Hermes. All in all it was fun to watch, but my phone kept ringing all the time.

After an hour the play ended, students had probably simmered down by now. As expected Ichinose and Horikita came to the theatre shortly after I stood up to leave. They had called me countless times during the play but I had not received their call anyways.

"Ayanokouji-kun where have you been?!" Ichinose asked. While Horikita stood there silently, fortunately she had kept quiet about my involvement at the end of the day.

"I was watching this play, it is entertaining."

"Ah, besides that are you well now?! You retired without any notice to us."

"I am well Ichinose, just a little weakness."

"Oh okay, by the way Hirata told us that you gave him the leader name of Class B and Class C. Saying that it was me and Horikita who figure those names out."

That is true, I had asked Hirata to stay quiet on this matter, but since I was not very direct about keeping it discreet so he ended up telling Ichinose when she asked about it.

I turned towards Horikita, as if asking what she did after that.

"I agreed with him that I was the one who figured it out, but now I demand a proper explanation of what happened actually."

Apparently she hid away my existence as naturally as she could from Hirata but Ichinose ended up noticing the incongurrency. Telling these two about my plans is not much of a loss, since Chabashira-sensei will be leaking more information soon anyways.

Better move would be to let Ichinose know about what happened as well, since if she was the traitor then Horikita would not have allowed Ichinose to approach me with her anyway.

"I will tell you how I figured this all out, but like before my only condition is that you two keep quiet on this matter. I won't compromise on this."

They both nodded slightly in agreement.

"What would you like to ask?"

"How did you figure out the identity of the Class B leader?" Ichinose was the first to ask.

"The night of the first day, I had asked Akito to switch over the watch with me. At that time I bought a camera from the school that could at least record for 5 days. I installed it in the very small chamber the hut had on its ceiling, where we had found the map."

Since no class would risk claiming a spot in the last 2 days for some measly amount of points 5 days was enough for security.

"Wait, how did you install the camera alone? That spot was quite high."

"Let us skip that part, I don't want to remember it."

"Okay so how did you find the identity of the leader?"

"On the third night when the downpour began I stopped you all purposefully from reclaiming the hut, in order to give the other classes an easy opening to snatch it away. But Kanzaki was cautious, he scanned the hut thoroughly before reclaiming it."

Fortunately he did not notice the small hole in the ceiling through which the camera peeked.

"When they claimed it I deduced their class leader was Chihiro Shiranami."

"Wait, I didn't even know her name, how did you know her?"

"I had not known the name of that girl nor would I have been able to identify her. As the angle at which the camera was placed only showed a small portion of face and mostly hair of the person. But on the morning of the third day Kanzaki met us in front of the waterfall, there Kushida called out to that girl. I remembered her name from that incident and thus, was able to identify her again when I retrieved the camera by infiltrating the hut covertly."

"Just from when were you planning all this?"

"The moment we found out the map."

It took both of them a little time to swallow the story.

"How did you find the identity of the Class C leader?" Horikita asked this time.

"When I discovered Albert standing at the hut, I assumed that he was there to stall our time. The most possible target would be the treehouse, since we had sent the other girls to the waterfall already."

"Yes, but how did you find the name of the leader? Did you install another camera?"

"No, this time I issued an order under Ichinose's name to Akito. I asked him to bolt through the forest and reach the treehouse as Class C was targeting it at the very moment. There was only half an hour left, so all the credit goes to him for reaching the spot on time and also being able to identify their leader in such darkness. After that we met at the waterfall where he provided me with the name of Class C's leader."

"Wait, does that mean he was not going to use the toilet at that time?"

"No, I lied to you both. Since I had no plan of leaving the hut alone either."

"I see, I have one last question Ayanokouji-kun."

"Go ahead."

"Did you formulate the strategy of fake leaders that Horikita-san brought to me?"

Lying to her at this point would not offer any merits, she has deduced it anyways. We might be able to lie our way out of this together, but since Chabashira-sensei does not plan to stop the information leak in the near future. It is better to gain Ichinose's trust before sensei does. On top of that she was not the traitor I have been trying to smoke out.

"Yes, I had asked Horikita to keep quiet on this purposefully."

"But why? Why did you not tell this plan to me as well?"

"Because I tentatively assumed you as the renegade we were searching for."

She looked deep into the darkness of my eyes with her own childlike gaze, once she had stared deep into the abyss she averted her gaze.

"Now, I do not have any doubts on your abilities. If you help us then reaching Class A would not be a pipe dream after all." Horikita boldly stated.

"I will help you to reach Class A, but I would like you to not pry any deeper into my life."

This was another condition I could not compromise on. Horikita gave me a firm handshake. But Ichinose stood there like a rock.

"I assume you will also do the same, Ichinose."

"I think so."

"By the way, now I would like to know what name Ryuuen wrote in his answer for Class D leader."

Both of their expressions stiffened up suddenly, Ichinose snapped out of her thoughts.

"I think we have found the traitor, Ryuuen named Akito Miyake as the leader." Ichinose spoke.

"That means the traitor is from the group Kushida leads."

"Kushida is an innocent girl, it would be easy for the traitor to work under her blind spot." I spoke.

After a brief moment of hesitation, both of them spoke at once.

"I don't think so."

They both looked at each other with an inquisitive look with a hint of surprise. They are not the type of people who would be jealous of Kushida, perhaps they know something I don't.

"Why would you say that?"

Ichinose averted her gaze, it was clear she did not want to talk about whatever it is. I turned my eyes towards Horikita, she looked right back at me.

"I just have a feeling that she is not innocent, I am not sure of it at the moment but I do have some hints. But think about it on the morning of the first day Yukimura checked the girl's tent for some reason, don't you think that is an unnatural action to be taken by him?"

"You are right, Horikita-san. The girls had warned us not to tell any of the boys about it, but Yukimura suddenly checked the girl's tent. I think someone told him to do that."

I see, so this was a strategy to split up the class. In order to operate with the rivals easily. But it still does not confirm Kushida as a turncoat.

"Ayanokouji-kun, my point is please be wary of Kushida as well."

"I understand. I will take care of that Ichinose."

More like you are asking me to assume she is the traitor. It might not fit her personality, but it is not completely out of question either. If other classes offer her a generous amount of points for this, then she might as well sell her friends to reach Class A at some point.

But still, this would not be a much more efficient way than helping the class. Perhaps she has different motives than just ascending alone, Ichinose and Horikita are also hiding something from me.

With time these pieces will connect to make a picture soon, Ichinose is right I must mark Kushida as the most probable traitor for now. By now Ryuuen might have figured out the discrepancies in his points as well. Not only had he received a 50 point penalty for guessing the leader wrong but additionally all his points gained by claiming spots were also negated.

Apparently Ryuuen will start another series of cunning, audacious and brutal attacks on us with his underhanded methods. Now that Kanzaki is wounded as well he will also bite back soon. At the moment he was only 20 to 25 points behind Class A, that implies he is the strongest contender at the moment.

Even if we charged into this mess together, then .. .

"Ugh"

I unintentionally let out a small noise. Why am I even analyzing options of Class D? I did not want to. Horikita and Ichinose were the one aiming for the top, not me. All I wanted was an ordinary school life where nothing ever happened. Otherwise? I can't do it.

"I can't thank you more for leading us to such a splendid result, Ayanokouji-kun."

"I don't mind that, just leave me out of all this from next time."

"But why are you not trying to reach Class A?"

". ."

"I prefer a more peaceful school life."

Ichinose looked at me in disbelief, it might have come as a surprise to her that someone who had the capability to achieve her dreams chose not to do that.

Ichinose did not push me for answers any further, as I walked past her.

You will not understand, Ichinose, how defective of a human I am. I was simply a horrible human being, my foolishness transcends your ability to comprehend.

--x--x--x--x--

Postscript: There guys, it is the end of the island arc. I hope you all like it, if you have any doubts about it please ask in the comment section. The sad map I drew for the island had been replaced by a brand new one made by two of my friend's Madlad and Buzz. I will take a little break to think about the zodiac sign test and from now the updates will slow down to a chapter or two per week (or maybe more). Thank you all for reading my work!

BONUS CHAPTER (Haste Akito)

Bonus chapter (Haste Akito)

(Author's note: This is the POV of Akito, about how he managed to get the name of Class C leader. Following the instructions given by Ayanokouji under the name of Ichinose.)

It's cold. The brush of the wind rushed through me as we continued going through the forest. The rain had simmered down but it was still mizzling. Like that it matters since we were already soaked from head to toe.

By now, the timer should've reset. We should pick up our speed even though it's slippery and almost completely dark.

Shortly, we arrived at the hut. Though, we weren't the first ones there. Yamada Albert from Class C was guarding the spot. It seems like our spot got snatched.

On ascending the ladder, I found Ayanokouji, Horikita and Ichinose discussing something.

"Very well, you both hide here. I will explain the plan to Akito while we hide in the bushes over there, the more angles we can get the view the better."

"Agreed, let's get moving."

We quickly departed our ways. Ayanokouji and I hid behind the bushes. He turned towards me and spoke up.

"Akito, there is something Ichinose ordered you to do."

"What is it?"

"According to her, Class B and Class C might be working together, so at the moment Class C might be targeting the Treehouse since it is near their base."

"Wait What?! Then, shouldn't we move there right now? We only have 40 minutes left before it resets."

"Right, but there's a high chance that we might catch them in the act since it's not claimed yet. But, it's unlikely that we'll reach the treehouse on time if we move together. So, Ichinose chose you, the fastest one out of the four of us, to go there and discover Class C's leader."

"But how am I supposed to go there alone? I'm not familiar with the directions to the treehouse."

"Take this," Ayanokouji handed me a flashlight.

"When you move nearly 100m from here, you will discover a small boulder. It might be dark but it's still noticeable. After reaching the boulder, take a left and keep moving silently until you get to Class C's base. You should know the way from there, right?

Ayanokouji recited the directions in a low voice while pointing towards the path. Considering all of this, I felt as if I had seen that boulder already. Perhaps I can do it after all.

"If you succeed, we'll be able to turn the tables. You'll be putting damage on Class C while also bringing us 50 points."

That is a sound plan. With this, our Class points will definitely increase. That means our private points should too. Also, beating Ryueen in his own game sounds like music to my ears. Props to Ichinose.

"Okay, Ayanokouji, leave it to me."

"Alright. Meet us at the waterfall after. We'll be there."

Without wasting any time, I picked up my feet and quickly ran towards the direction of the boulder with the flashlight guiding me. The ground was so slippery. At this point, I'm running on mud.

I stumbled a few times but I couldn't stop. I have to reach the treehouse as fast as possible.

This path should take nearly 1 and a half hours if we walked the whole way while skipping the waterfall. But if I run non-stop, I might make it in time.

With the adrenaline flowing through my body, I felt warm. I rushed towards the bushes and avoided as many trees as possible. I started jumping over the mud puddles.

There it is.

Shortly, I reached the boulder Ayanokouji was talking about. With no time to spare, I quickly shifted my weight towards my left. With that, I started running again until I took sight of Class C's base camp.

I switched off the flashlight and began walking around the camp with gentle footing.

!!?

A sudden rustle of bushes put my instincts at alarm. I stopped and quickly hid behind a tree. At a distance, I could hear the faint sound of falling water.

Curious, I took a peek only to find a student from Class C peeing at the bark of a tree. As disgusting as it was, I took a closer look and found out that it was Ishizaki. He was sleepy, rubbing his eyes with the same hand he once... Nevermind. Anyways, if I could report him he would get points deducted easily.

Though, that's not the plan at hand here.

I sneaked out of there quietly and made haste towards the treehouse. It was pitch dark, the silence deafened me.

Just then, a noise coming from the treehouse descended on my ears. I know that noise...It's the sound that the device makes whenever it's reset. I approached the tree with caution and hid behind the bushes, my heart rate increased.

After a few minutes, a girl descended down the ladder. Oh, she slipped.

I could barely tell but she had short blue hair. Although she slipped, she landed on the ground flawlessly. When she passed by the bush I was hiding in, I became certain of her identity, Honestly, you could already tell with the blue hair and athletic ability alone. She was Mio Ibuki.

Once she was out of sight, I quickly climbed the treehouse to check if anyone else was there. Well, it was empty. It seems like Class C is in a hurry. I glanced towards the countdown on the device. It was claimed barely 2 minutes ago. That means, Mio Ibuki is the leader.

I should inform Ichinose as soon as possible.

With that, I silently left the area, just in case Ishizaki or Ibuki was still around.

As soon as I was a solid distance away from the treehouse, I ran towards the waterfall. I was slowly running out of breath. The amount of running I did today is starting to hurt my legs. But it was worth it.

I reached the waterfall shortly, and without even second guessing myself, I ran through the crashing without. I dragged myself to the nearest wall and passed out.

Although, I was woken up shortly by Ayanokouji. Ichinose and Horikita stood near the device.

"Did you find anything, Akito?"

"Ah? Yes. I am certain that Class C's leader is Ibuki Mio."

"Thank you for your hard work. I will relay this message to Hirata afterwards."

After talking to Ayanokouji. I laid my head against the wall again, begging for rest. As much as I wanted to stay, we had to go back to the base camp.

The next morning, Hirata announced that two of our spots were taken but for some reason, he kept the information about Class C's leader a secret. Maybe he plans to surprise us at the end of all of this.

Even though I was really tired and my legs still hurt, I'm really glad that I was of use to everyone. I will wait patiently for the pleasant surprise that'll meet us at the end of this special exam.

Chapter- 1 (VOL- 3 Cruise ship arc)

Chapter- 1

Once we were abroad Speranza again, it felt like reconquering the lost paradise. We were finally back at the heaven that was once snatched from us at the beginning of this trip.

Three days have passed since the island test concluded. While Class A saw no growth in their class points, Class B was able to close the small gap between them. At this very point they are approximately 70-80 points far from each other. On the other hand Class C and Class D have outperformed the upper classes, currently we are at 387 points as far as I remember, and on adding the Class C points they should be near 650 points.

Looking at the total number of points our class might appear harmless and utterly hopeless, but the previous test results would have alarmed all the other classes against us. One would expect them to mercilessly attack us, but there wasn't any opportunity in sight at the moment.

Yes, everyone began to relax as it dawned on them that the next week was purely a vacation. That being said there was still a hint of wariness in them as somewhere deep down we all expected another surprise test to knock our door all of a sudden. Even as they relished the merry holidays, an unspoken alertness was present between the classes.

Drowned in thoughts I reached my destination, the gym. The island test had clearly highlighted my weak athletic abilities, Horikita's stamina was a source of inspiration for me. Deep down I know I might not be able to reach her level any sooner due to other activities, but it is never bad to cultivate a good habit that pushes one's limits.

I asked my roommates Mii-chan and Shinohara-san to tag along, but they did not seem that interested. My fourth roommate was none other than Kushida-san. We talked randomly, but I still felt disturbed by the fact that she was potentially the traitor that sold our class leader identity.

According to Hirata we can't launch an all out search for the traitor by announcing it to the class, since that would only stir discord in our new found peace and give the traitor a chance to hide as everyone suspects one another. All in all it was a stalemate, hopefully we do not encounter anything like this in future.

After a slight warmup I climbed the treadmill, it was my first time on it. It had an easy to use interface so I did not face any significant problems. With the speed set, I started jogging. Eventually the speed increased to a swift run, just then a loud noise of iron dropping on ground caught my attention.

My eyes followed the sound to discover a big muscular man curling weights, veins popped beneath his black skin. Taking deep periodic breaths, he was Yamada Albert. The wall that stood between us and the lost spot on the island test, I wonder if such muscles were even possible by training alone for someone his age.

(Author's note: Looking around the gym while running on a treadmill is actually hazardous.)

At the corner of the gym I spotted Katsuragi sitting alone, at first it appeared as if he was resting. But his face was still in battle mode, I assume his classmates are haunting him for the results on the island test. Do not tell me his radar is sensing another special test incoming!

As I watched those two my running speed was gradually increasing to the point I was not able to keep up with it anymore.

"Waah!!!" I exclaimed as my legs paced up to their limits.

"Wooh! Slow it down Shinohara-san she will fall off."

"Hehehehehe, no wonder she covered the whole island thrice a day."

With a sly grin Shinohara-san slowed down the death machine.

PHEW

"Sit down Ichinose-san, you should take some rest." Mii-chan spoke softly in a worried tone.

"Sorry, sorry Ichinose-san. You were so engrossed looking at the guys I was not able to stop myself from playing a little." Shinohara-san spoke in an apologetic tone, making sure that she had no wrong intentions, I decided to forgive her.

Apparently while I was analyzing the other members, these two sneaked from the other side and were increasing the speed of my treadmill. No wonder it was so hard to keep up.

"Haha, no worries Shinohara-san. I was planning to test my limits anyways. More importantly why are you two here? I thought you were not interested in working out."

Both of them were holding paper bags in their hands so it was unlikely they were here to workout.

"Well this place happened to be on the same deck as the clothes and accessories store, so we decided to check upon you before leaving."

"Oh! You two have rented some goods I see."

They both revealed the contents of their bags, two swimsuits. Mii-chan had a violet matching to her indigo couloured hairs, while Shinohara-san owned a white one which had a graceful vibe to it.

"I can't wait to see you two in these!"

"Why don't you join us at the pool after this, wanna rent a sexy swimsuit?" Was describing it that way necessary, Shinohara-san?

Mii-chan shook her head from left to right and spoke up.

"I completely forgot to mention the reason we came to you! Hirata-kun asked you to meet him in the cafeteria in an hour."

"Oh! I completely forgot about it!"

Both Shinohara-san and Mii-chan exclaimed to each other, I wonder if Hirata found anything new.

"I see, I guess then I will have to skip the pool for now."

Both of them appeared a little downhearted, but I needed to attend the urgent matters first.

"Why the long face? We still have a week left right?"

"Yes, we will have a lot of fun together!" I must make time for them, so that I can enjoy my school life as well.

Shortly after they left, I was also done with my workout. On my way to the fourth deck where my room was, the phone in my pocket chimed once. Checking it I discovered a text message, it was from Hirata.

Can you please bring Horikita-san to our meeting? I think we should check if she has found any useful info.

The message was short and to the point. Even Hirata who had no problems approaching people was not able to get the cooperation of Horikita. She helps me in a reluctant manner as well, but it is still better than not getting her cooperation at all. All things considered I was like a bridge between these two powerful entities.

On reaching the room I informed Horikita about the meeting scheduled by Hirata, it took some time before it was read but she replied instantly.

Sure.

Perhaps she was also curious to know anything useful we might have found. After taking a shower I wore my other change of jersey and left for the meeting half an hour prior to the decided time.

Shortly after reaching there Hirata joined me.

"You are earlier than expected, Ichinose-san."

"Haha old habits die hard, I guess."

I looked at the time, it was still 10 minutes before the scheduled time. Hirata's phone which he kept on the table started ringing. I instinctively made out the words Karuizawa-san.

Hirata looked at me with a worried expression, as if asking permission.

"Feel free, receive the call Hirata-kun." reluctantly he stood up and left the seat to receive the call.

Karuizawa and Hirata have been dating each other for a while now, it happened shortly after the day all girls held the poll to decide the hottest guy of our grade.

I looked around the cafeteria, it clearly outclassed the one in Keyaki mall. The faint smell of coffee in the air set a nice theme to it.

My eyes roaming around the whole room glanced at the entrance on hearing the door opening.

Our third member was here, her elegant presence fit perfectly in the atmosphere. Her crimson red eyes scanned the whole room, apparently searching for Hirata.

"Where is Hirata?" A very expected question.

"He will be back in a bit, he had an important call to attend."

Without saying another word she sat down on the third seat. We sat there in silence for an awkward minute, perhaps she was more comfortable when she was quiet. But I had something to ask her.

"Did you talk to Ayanokouji-kun recently?"

She got the hidden meaning behind it, Ayanokouji was also investigating the traitor, hopefully.

"No he had not made any contact recently." She spoke in an indifferent tone.

"I see."

Shortly Hirata also returned, after apologizing kindly he began the discussion.

"I have been keeping an eye on the girls from Kushida-san's group. Although some of them are quite open, there are some who have a reserved personality."

"That is true, perhaps if you can narrow down the list then we can look out for the listed girls."

"That being said, we can't accuse anyone of being a traitor unless we have solid proof."

We were back at square one, Hirata scheduled the meeting expecting us to bring something to table and we joined expecting him to do that.

As our conversation continued, an unexpected guest showed up at our meeting. It was Ryuuen Kakeru, he closed the distance between us flashing his irritating smile. Pulling out a chair he approached our table.

"Kukuku, this is an unusual gathering. I did not know you had friends Suzune."

"I have warned you to refrain from using my real name, Ryuuen-kun. What business might you have with us?"

"Tell me how you wrangled those results on the island test."

"I have nothing to tell you, perhaps you would like to tell us about how you figured out our class leader even when we replaced the leader at the last moment." Horikita answered her question with another of her.

But it was unlikely Ryuuen would reveal anything that easily.

"Don't play games with me lady, I know that my answer was wrong. It appears like you are not going to give anything away."

"Anyone can deduce that much by looking at the wide gap in total points between us. You all are just pathetic." Horikita taunted Ryuuen but it did not look like it was going to work.

"Kukuku, do not get ahead of yourself. I am pretty sure the victory on the island was not yours." Here it comes, apparently he has deduced the incongruency of our result and abilities.

"Hm? Of course it was not mine alone, reluctantly I shall admit that it was a result of the joint effort of the three of us sitting here."

I and Hirata grasped the situation, we must not reveal any information to him. Especially Horikita and I must not let any hint slip towards Ryuuen that would point towards Ayanokouji.

"I did not expect you to have companions, you have lost your charm Suzune." Ryuuen averted his eyes, losing interest in her.

"But I am sure none of you benighted morons can actually think of a cultural enough method to defeat me." He looked at me straight into my eyes as he said that.

Apparently from culture he meant the underhanded methods he liked to use against people, indeed deceiving the whole class was an unethical measure we needed to take in order to gain leverage over them.

"Looks like you are getting at something, what is the culturedmethod you might be talking about, Ryuuen-kun?" I spoke with a thin smile on my face that did not reach my eyes.

"Replacing the leader right before the test came as a surprise to me, but on top of that you all gave the wrong name of the leader to the whole class."

He took a brief pause, no one confirmed a word he said but no one denied it either. His lips curled into a smile and he continued.

"Suzune is far too serious minded to come up with a plan to change the leader, and you two are not even capable of dreaming to lie about it to your tribe of apes. Someone entirely different from you all must have formulated this plan."

A faint current of electricity ran down my spine as he narrated his on the money hypothesis, but I did not let the shock reach my face. Hirata sat there silently like a rock, apparently seeds of doubts were germinating in his heart. What Ryuuen said might have been the trigger for Hirata to deduce that I might not have been the one to plan the victory after all.

"Underestimating us will make you short-sided and ultimately invite more failures to your door, Ryuuen-kun. Better accept the reality and adapt to it." I said without twitching an eyebrow.

"Kukuku, I believe that overestimating you will lead me down the wrong path. Not that it matters now, I have already closed the distance between the classes. I will take care of you small flies afterwards, first I will take care of the upper classes for starters. You all can be the deserts." he spoke in his usual conceited tone.

"Not that you have any chance to do that anytime soo-"

Just as I was about to finish my sentence, all our phones vibrated at once. There was a loud, dinging sound that meant we'd received a

message from the school. Usually it was a message with new instructions to follow, or some kind of modification to an event. Your phone would make a sound even if you had it on silent. Clearly, it was a message of high importance.

Even though they'd explained this system to us after school started, we hadn't received any important messages during our summer vacation until now. Simultaneously, an announcement could be heard throughout the ship.

"Attention. This is an announcement to all students. All students should have received a message from the school, as indicated in the contact line. Please check your individual mobile devices and follow the instructions accordingly. In the event that you did not receive a message, we apologize for the inconvenience. Please go to the nearest faculty member for assistance. Because the contents of the message are extremely important, please do not miss it. We repeat—"

Ryuuen was already reading the message we all had received, as I pulled out my phone he turned his head up with an unsettling grin.

"Kukukuku looks like I actually have the opportunity, Ichinose."

Without even trying to analyze his nonsensical words I turned my attention to the screen of my phone.

A special test will begin soon. Please gather in the designated room at the designated time. Anyone who arrives later than ten minutes after start time may be penalized. Please gather in Room 204 on the second deck by 18:00 today. Because it takes about twenty minutes to reach the area, we ask that you please use the restrooms now if necessary. Either silence your phone or turn it off, and make your way over.

( Author's note: Yes, the dragon group had their timing changed.)

"A special test?"

Hirata said in a nonplussed tone. It was completely understandable, although we were expecting it deep down but school had managed to take us by surprise again. So this is the opportunity Ryuuen was talking about.

"Struggle as much as you like, this round will be mine."

With those words he left the meeting. Once he left we sat there for a moment in confusion, the message wanted us to assemble in a private room, which can't fit more than 20 students at a time.

"What does your message say, Hirata-kun?"

"It says I have to report at room 224,by 20:40 today."

"Huh? My time is 18:00 and the designated room is 204."

"I see, perhaps they plan on testing us at different times and locations. But honestly speaking it seems quite an inefficient way to conduct a special test." Hirata spoke looking at me then Horikita but she was still staring at her phone. After typing a little she raised her head.

"I have the same time and room as you Ichinose, Ayanokouji just contacted us. He has the same time and room as well."

A faint current of relief ran through me on hearing his name.

Chapter- 2 (RULES)

Chapter- 2 (RULES)

I reached my destination about 10 minutes before the designated time, the second deck felt quite deserted when compared to the cafeteria or the shops. Without any reason to wait I decided to enter the room.

"Enter."

An instantaneous response was heard the moment I knocked the door. I got into the room with a confident smile, near the wall opposite to the entrance sat Mashima-sensei on his seat facing the door.

"Hey there, Ichinose-san. Looks like we are struck in this together."

A girl with copper brown hair sat before Sensei, she was Chiaki Matsushita from my Class. We have talked occasionally as Shinohara-san is our common friend, even though she hangs out with us, she seems to have a more laid back personality. This was a great chance to talk to her alone.

"Haha seems so, this special test is another great chance to earn class points. Let us do our best!" I said with my eyes filled with determination.

"Yes, hopefully it is not as troublesome as the last one."

I sat beside her on the seat near a small table, a file with some papers in it rested on the table. As it was lying there unopened I assume we were not allowed to view the materials in it until all members were present.

According to the clock, there were 2 minutes left before the meeting started.

"So, do you have any idea who the other two seats belong to, Ichinose-san?" Matsushita whispered to me.

Knock Knock*

"Enter." Mashima-sensei gave an instant reply.

A girl with long black hair entered the room with a stern look on her face, she was accompanied by another student of our class.

"There you have the answer, Matsushita-san."

"Take your seats. The two of you are late."

Actually there was a little time left for the meeting to start, but we were asked to be there five minutes prior to the given time. Horikita took the seat nearest to her, which left Ayanokouji the only seat beside me. Hopefully he does not feel uncomfortable since he is the only guy in our group.

"Horikita, Ayanokouji, Ichinose and Matsushita, from Class D. Without further ado, I will now explain the special test to you all."

All four of us sat there quietly, Mashima-sensei continued his explanation.

"In this special test, all the first-year students will be divided into twelve groups based on the signs of the Zodiac. Everyone will participate within their respective group. The purpose of this examination is to test your thinking."

I see, so that explains why Hirata had different timing than us. Test our thinking, huh? Sounds better than running around the island day and night. Sensei stopped for a breath and continued.

"Society needs three fundamental qualities in order to progress: action, thinking, and teamwork. Those with the necessary qualities will become wonderful adults. The previous exam on the uninhabited island focused heavily on testing your teamwork. However, we shall now test your thinking in four ways: your ability to thoroughly process information, which is an essential component of this test. Your ability to analyze your current situation and clarify the task at hand. The ability to solve the problem after you've clarified the process and identified the task. The ability to utilize your imagination, and the ability to create new values. Those are the qualities you'll need."

Okay, that explains why school wants to test our thinking. Apparently he was about to get to the part where the mechanism of the test was explained.

"As I've said, in this test we have divided you all into twelve groups. Are there any questions thus far?"

Wait what? That literally explained nothing. We sat there trying to find some hidden hint he might have dropped but I am sure there was nothing. When he did not receive any queries he took a deep breath and continued.

"About the groups; they do not consist of members only from one class. They are made up of three to five individuals from each class. As we speak the other students of your group are getting the same explanation in other rooms. To ensure that while inquiring with the teacher a class does not end up clearing doubts which other class was not able to figure out, you all are getting explanations separately. Your group assignment is 'Dragon'. Here is a list of the members. You will be required to return this list when you leave the room. If you feel it's necessary, I would recommend trying to memorize it now.

Taking the seal from the table, he unfastened it and gave us a postcard sized paper. The list of students classified on the basis of class was written on it.

CLASS A: Katsuragi Kouhei, Nishikawa Ryouko, Matoba Shinji, Yano Koharu

CLASS B: Andou Saya, Kanzaki Ryuuji, Tsube Hitomi

CLASS C: Shiina Hiyori, Satoru Kaneda, Ryuuen Kakeru, Sonoda Masashi

CLASS D: Horikita Suzune, Chiaki Matsushita, Ichinose Honami, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka

Huh? This group has a unique set of people, or shall I say the class leaders. Katsuragi, Kanzaki and not to forget Ryuuen. Beside me Ayanokouji looked at the paper indifferently, if he is in this group that means the school might know he is already leading the class from behind the scenes.

Looking at Class A and Class B participants one can conclude that the academics was the deciding factor to form this group as the names given were generally on top of their test results. But if we look at Class C and Class D, there were some discrepancies to the theory like Ryuuen, Ayanokouji and Matsushita. Not to mention I have seen the name of Shiina Hiyori in the Class C academic leaderboard but there were more students above her.

"Don't worry. I will answer any questions you have. I believe you will be able to understand everything afterward. The point of this test is to ignore the prior fraught relationships between Classes A through D. If you do, you'll have a shortcut. From this point on, you are no longer acting as members of Class D, but rather as members of the Dragon group. Whether you pass or fail this test depends on each group."

Ignoring the fraught relationship between classes is easier said than done, especially in our group where people like Katsuragi and Ryuuen reside. Most probably we won't be taking the shortcut Mashima-sensei was talking about.

"There are four possible outcomes that can be achieved in this special

test. No exceptions. We have also prepared handouts with the grade items so that you may better understand them. However, you are prohibited from taking these handouts, taking photographs of them, or anything or the sort. You should verify the contents here and now."

With that he took out the other contents of the file and handed it to us.

AN EXPLANATION OF THE SUMMER GROUP

SPECIAL EXAMINATION

This assignment centers on a "VIP" assigned to each group. By

providing answers to the school via a defined method, you will earn one of four outcomes. At 8:00 a.m. on the first day of the test, each student will simultaneously receive a message informing you that we have chosen someone to be the "VIP" in your group. The test begins tomorrow and ends at 9:00 p.m. on the fourth day. (You are completely free to do as you wish for the first day.) Each group should gather twice during the day at a predetermined time in a predetermined room to talk for one hour, so that they may discuss matters with only their group.

The contents of each group's discussion shall be left to the discretion of the group itself.

After the test has concluded, the school will only accept answers during the period between 9:30 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. on that final night. During that time, each group must submit their answer regarding who they think the "VIP" is. Each individual may only submit an answer once, but only the first answer received from any member of a group will decide the test result for that group.

Answers must be sent only to an email address that we shall provide to each group, and only by using your mobile devices.

The twelve VIPs cannot submit answers.

You may only submit an answer for the group to which you are assigned.

Test results will be sent to all students via email at 11:00 p.m. on the final day.

A list of fundamental rules was written on the paper. More detailed descriptions of the rules and a list of prohibited items were also on the sheet, among other things. Although the environment was far favourable than the island test, the terms and conditions were far stricter. After the rules, I saw the four potential "outcomes'':

OUTCOME #1: If the answer submitted by the group after 9:30 p.m. on the final day is correct, then everyone in the group will receive private points, including those of the VIP's classmates who belong to the group.

OUTCOME #2: If a group fails to submit an answer between

9:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. on the final day, or if someone from the group other than the VIP and their classmates submits an incorrect answer, then the VIP will be awarded 500,000 private points.

Why is VIP getting such atrocious amount of points for Outcome#2?! How much points will they receive in Outcome#1? If a member of a group answers then will it be considered as an answer from a group or an individual answers are a thing here?

With several question marks hanging on everyone's head, Horikita was the first to speak.

"May I ask a question, Sensei?"

"Hmm"

"I assume the term 'answer submitted by the group' refers to the answer sent by everyone, then what will happen if one or two member of the group fails to send the answer in the given time period?"

"Then Outcome#2 will emerge by default, it will be considered that no one sent an answer. Your doubt is justified. The school had not mentioned this in the handout. Since answering wrong would have no backlash in the time period of 9:30 to 10:00 one would only refrain from answering if they want to sabotage the points that were supposed to reach other classes or if they were not told the name other students of the group were submitting. Although no one would do that to make the outcome switch from #1 to #2, since it will only mean a loss of nearly 500,000 points regardless if you are VIP or not."

Horikita was probably getting the idea of this test little by little, Mashima-sensei's explanation unfastened some invisible knots in my head. But still it tied more knots than it opened, at best his explanation was ambiguous. What does he mean by having no backlash for answering after 9:30?

"I see, that explains things to an extent." With that she went back deep into her thoughts.

There was something left unsaid here, something still lacking. But we can still not put our finger on it. Apparently even Horikita needed some time to process that.

What did he mean by switching outcome from #1 to #2 would result in 500,000 damage?

"Yes. Do you have any other doubts related to the first two outcomes?"

Even though it was a special test the given outcomes did not have any effect on class points at all, everything was looking too good for the VIP and nothing in particular harmful for the group members. That simply means the other two outcomes are the catch of this death match between the star players.

"I have a doubt sensei," I stated politely.

"Continue."

"You said switching from outcome #1 to #2 would result in a loss of 500,000 irrespective of being VIP. Can you explain it further?"

"Yes, once you've met Outcome #1, and thus every member of your group would be awarded 500,000 points. In addition, as a reward for leading their group to achieving Outcome #1, the VIP would receive double that amount—1,000,000 points."

It took a second for me to understand the magnitude of points awarded to VIP, that much point was enough to persuade someone to betray their own class. Especially the traitor our class contains will for sure grab this chance if they are after points.

"On the other hand, Outcome #2... In the event that the VIP's identity is not discovered before the end of the examination, and no one in your group found out the identity of the VIP or some even attempted to lie about the identity, then only the VIP will be awarded points, just as it says. He or she will receive 500,000 points. If you compare the points awarded in two outcomes carefully you will realize that in Outcome#1 everyone in the group will receive 500,000 than Outcome #2."

It was hard to judge from his indifferent expression, but the tone of his explanation hinted that he was expecting this question. While clearing Horikita's doubt he had carefully dropped this hint for us to grab onto it.

"Thank you, Sensei. I understand it now."

"Now moving on to the other two outcomes of the test, you can turn the paper to the other side and read those. Ask me any doubts related to them once you are done reading them." His gaze grew sharper as he said that, perhaps the other two outcomes were dangerous as I thought.

The remaining two outcomes were written on it. For those two outcomes alone, answers would be accepted at any time during the test, or during the 30 minutes after the test had ended, just like with the other rules. Should you make a mistake in either timeframe, you would incur a penalty.

OUTCOME #3: This outcome is triggered when someone other than

the VIP gives the correct answer to the school without waiting until 9:30 p.m. on the final day of the exam. That student's class will gain fifty class points, and the person who submitted the correct answer will earn 500,000 private points. Also, the VIP's class will lose fifty class points as a penalty. At that point, the group's testing period will come to an end. However, if one of the VIP's classmates is the person who submits the correct answer, this answer will not be counted and the test will continue.

OUTCOME #4: This outcome is triggered when someone other than the VIP gives an incorrect answer without waiting until 9:30 p.m. on the final day of the exam. That student's class will lose fifty class points. The VIP will earn 500,000 private points, and the VIP's class will earn fifty class points. The testing period will end for the group that submitted the incorrect answer. However, if one of the VIP's classmates is the person who submits the incorrect answer, this answer will not be counted and the test will continue.

On reading it, it became clear to me what Mashima-sensei meant by having no backlash for wrong answers after 9:30 of last day. As the test began to take its shape the hidden fangs were revealed.

The other two outcomes made it practically impossible for anyone to even try pursuing the Outcome#1, the term 'traitor' was enough to instill the fear of losing 50 class points into the bones of the VIP. Penalizing other classes was more important than hoarding points in this test.

At first glance it seems that the points were assigned the same way as on the island test for finding the leader, but the dangers and mechanism of this test were completely different.

"The school will take anonymity into account during this test. At the end, only the outcomes for each group and the increase or decrease in points for each class will be announced. In other words, we will not announce the names of the VIPs or those who submitted answers. Also, if you wish, you may have a temporary ID assigned to you, to which you can transfer points. It is also possible to divide points up and receive them that way. If you yourself remain quiet, there should be no fear of discovery after the test. Of course, if it's not necessary for you to hide your identity, you may receive your points openly. That is perfectly fine."

That does it, with anonymity guaranteed it was easier to even fool your classmates along with the other group members. There was no recoil until you chose to get yourself in trouble by revealing your identity. A depressing series of subterfuge and probing was coming our way, given that observant individuals like Katsuragi, Kanzaki and Ryuuen were in our group we will have to lie naturally on the spot if our class turns up with a VIP.

"There should also be a list of prohibited actions on the sheet. Make sure to examine it thoroughly."

Listed were things like stealing another person's cell phone; using threats to confirm information related to the VIP; using someone else's cell phone without their permission to submit answers; and so on. The highest level of punishment for these actions was expulsion.

Furthermore, if any suspicious activity were discovered, the school would open up a thorough investigation to make sure no one had broken any rules. If someone lied about using threatening force, they could be expelled. It seemed like we were being monitored heavily, so it was best to keep that in mind. Also, the sheet said that discussion among students from other classes was forbidden until after the examination ended. If you broke that rule, you'd be expelled. Those were quite strict rules when compared to island exams.

"Tomorrow, you will go to your designated room at 1:00 p.m. and again at 8:00 p.m. Your group's name will be displayed on a name plate outside. Be sure to introduce yourselves when you meet the other members for the first time. After you've entered, leaving the room during the examination is not permitted. Please use the restroom ahead of time. In the event that you feel ill or can't endure it any longer, please contact your homeroom teacher immediately and make a request."

Just when I thought the explanation might have ended sensei took another deep breath and spoke.

"The school is committed to fairness, so we will be strict and impartial. After the VIP has been selected, we will not accept any changes, not even if the VIP wants to be changed. In addition, copying, deleting, transferring, or modifying emails sent from the school is prohibited. Understand these points clearly."

That was written about in detail on the list. We were decidedly not allowed to tamper with emails sent by the school, or use them to spread misinformation. On the flip side, that meant that any message sent from the school was 100% the truth.

All four of us listened to the rules quietly, a lot of information was thrown towards us at once. I tried to simplify the test in my head, a deadly possibility dawned upon me.

Assuming all classes might have equal numbers of VIPs to ensure fairness, our class would have 3 to 4 of them. If all of them were discovered then we will lose nearly 200 class points! The points we gained on the island test might spill out from our hand like sand.

I shook my head, there was no point in thinking about such heinous outcomes. It was time to play with all we have got.

Chapter- 3

Chapter- 3 (Kushida's POV)

(Author's note: As it says, this is Kushida's POV. This is 2 days after the deserted island test ended and before the zodiac sign test began)

"Kushida-san, let's go to the cafeteria after we're done shopping!"

"Sorry but I made plans to meet some girls in the restaurant. I'll be done in an hour. Can we go then?"

"Sure things, there is no hurry. See you in an hour then, Kushida-san."

"Oh, before you leave, have something to ask you, do you remember who was the leader that replaced Ayanokouji?"

"Huh? That's sudden, I think it was Yukimura-kun. Why do you ask?"

"Haha, nothing serious, I just don't understand how we came first on the island test even though Kouenji and Ayanokouji retired."

"That's true, I am also confused about it but it's vacation already so let's chill now."

"Yeah you're right. See you around, Onodera-san."

"~Byee~"

Aargh dammit, it's so exhausting to act polite outside when you are exasperated from inside. Especially when the name of those two bitches come around, it makes me even more infuriated.

I watched Onodera's back as she left. Even though she acts all friendly with me, behind my back, she complains that this guy she likes gives me more attention than her.

I turned my back to her and started descending the deck, starting from the second underground level as I went lower the decks became more and more deserted. My mask faded a little by little as I reached the lowest level, to the switchboard room. Generally speaking, students were not allowed to enter , but it still wasn't locked.

I went inside the room, it was so dead silent that one would not imagine that it was the same paradise we never dreamed to have. Occasionally the ship made a deep sound that echoed throughout the room, apparently when changing directions.

The meeting time was already an hour ago, but knowing the one I am about to meet; he seemingly was going to make me wait an hour anyways. I took out my phone only to find that the signal was non-existent here. Waiting became even harder without the internet.

Looking around the room I noticed a big panel made of switchboards, it was nearly as tall as me. There was also an emergency exit, with nothing interesting to do, I decided to check it out. The door opened with a small creaking noise, the stairs that led back to the ship were covered in dust. Apparently no one has used it in a while.

After a half hour, the door from which I entered opened again, it is surprising that he has the nerve to grin in front of me after making me wait so much. Ryuuen.

"You are late," I said.

"My speciality."

Ignoring his annoying words I proceeded to my question.

"Have you figured out what happened on the island? Doesn't look like you won."

"True, the leader's name you got was the wrong one."

He said without smiling, feels better now.

"I know that much, on investigating around I found out that the students were told names of different leaders. Precisely speaking me and my friends received one name, Karuizawa and her group received another. Even among the boys, names of two entirely different leaders were given."

He walked to the nearest wall and leaned against it, closing his eyes he started analyzing the new information I threw at him. After some time he opened his eyes and spoke.

"Replacing the leader was already unexpected, but seems like they had found out that the identity of the leader was exposed. After that they would have assumed that there was a traitor in the class, in order to narrow it down and mislead the traitor they distributed different names in the class."

A small current ran down my spine, I gave the camera to Ryuuen and the other tools were buried undisturbed until the last day. This does not make any sense, how else could one find out that the name of the leader is out?

"Who do you mean exactly by 'they'?"

I can think about the process that led to this afterwards, first I need to identify my target.

"Peace out, lady. They may have narrowed down the list, but it is hard to imagine that they would zero upon you with just that much."

As if reading my thoughts he asked me to refrain from launching attacks. His words did make me feel relieved a little, but there was no time to backoff we are far too deep into this.

"Okay, now tell me who all do you think might know about this?"

"They are just as hard for you to find as hard it is for them to find you."

"Why? I am pretty sure Hirata would have an idea since he was the one who tricked my group."

"Can't say for sure. That sycophant might have been fooled just like you, it is totally possible that even he did not know the identity of the true leader."

"This is annoying." I snapped, but Ryuuen remained calm. His eyes were misty, perhaps he was thinking something.

"Now that I recall, the moment I mentioned the name of the leader to Ichinose on the last day, she suddenly turned towards you-"

"Not that bitch!" This was just getting more irritating.

"Kukuku, simmer down." He spoke with an unnerving smile, which did not help in calming my mood in the least.

I took my time to calm down and Ryuuen took his time to think. A minute passed then two, he took a breath to speak again.

"I don't think that anyone of your moron leaders is shrewd enough to come up with an underhanded plan like lying to the whole class, on top of that replacing the leader. I think it is someone entirely different pulling the strings from shadow."

I listened to him calmly, perhaps he is right.

"Can you find the one you are talking about?"

"I have no reason to do that, they seem like a good plaything. But now I will devour the upper classes first."

"What?! I gave you the name of the leader on the island; do it for me!"

"Kukuku, the deal was for Ichinose and Suzune. I assure you that the one you are searching for is not them."

Just like a hound who demanded to be fed more before hunting, Ryuuen showed no interest in Class D. I bit my lip and swallowed my hatred, sooner or later I will give him the incentive he needs to help me.

"Very well." I spoke in a low voice.

Ryuuen turned around and started heading back to the door.

I stood there alone racking my brain, I will investigate more, I guess. With that I reached back to my friends, the whole day I was on an alert trying to find some clues to unravel what happened on the island.

But fate had something else for me; the very next day, the school announced a special test.

"Hehehe, now I have something to feed the hound." A thin smile crept up my face as I looked down at my phone with the names of the two VIPs in our class.

Chapter- 4

Chapter- 4

Once the meeting was done, Mashima-sensei asked us to leave the room. Perhaps he was waiting for the next batch, Horikita-san left ahead of us.

"See you tomorrow, Ayanokouji-kun."

He answered me with a slight nod and left the room as well.

"Let us go, Matsushita-san."

"Wanna go to the restaurant? It is time for dinner already."

We left the room discussing our meals.

"Yeah! Sounds good. Do you like seafood, Matsushita-san?"

"Not much, you know how they look kinda alive and all."

I understand your pain Matsushita-san, I have felt it on a spiritual level.

"Haha I understand, so which kind of food do you like here?"

"I like the French dish named, Chicken leu."

"Nice name, I will try it today I guess."

"People do have different tastes but I am sure you will like it. Cuz it's really delicious."

Confident assumption she has there, I like the way she thinks.

On reaching the restaurant, we found it quite deserted for dinner time. Perhaps the batch which Hirata belonged to was getting introduced to the test and our batch was busy figuring out the shape of the test.

We took a table with two seats, and placed our order. This was not exactly a time for feasting but I had accepted Matsushita-san's invitation so I must see through it.

"I will be back in a minute from washroom,"

"Sure thing Ichinose-san."

Shortly after entering the washroom I texted Ayanokouji and Horikita to meet at the deck tonight. Figuring out the rules was paramount at this moment, Ayanokouji replied in a few seconds while Horikita just left it after seeing it, perhaps she was a little irritated by the frequent gathering.

Assuming both of them will meet on the deck I went back to Matsushita-san with reassurance.

Supper was the usual savory cuisine and the pleasant conversation with Matsushita made it better. She is a well spoken individual, even though we haven't talked much she received the conversation warmly as I progressed.

We walked back to the rooms chatting amiably, after departing our ways I made sure that I was out of her vision. Then turned back towards the stairs, nearing the stairs I discovered students ascending to our deck. Perhaps their introduction to the test was done.

It was still 30 minutes from the meeting time but it will be hard to sneak out of my room filled with my roommates.

The deck offered the beautiful scenery I saw on the island, the moon was still hidden so the visibility was low but the stars twinkled in the beautiful night sky. There were a few couples who were scattered around the deck; holding hands standing aside each other looking up at the starry sky.

I heard footsteps from the stairway, few more couples poured in. I decided to move on and give them a little private time, strolling through the deck I saw a lone figure near the railing. Since it was dark I was not able to identify the student, but judging from the silhouette he was a male student.

As if sensing my presence he turned back towards me.

"Ichinose?" That voice.

"Ayanokouji-kun, is that you?" He moved towards me stepping into the visible range.

"You are quite early Ayanokouji-kun, perhaps you were waiting on someone else to watch the stars huh?"

I asked him playfully, you never know he might be waiting on his secret girlfriend and I might be interrupting his plans.

"I was waiting for you, Ichinose."

Eeek!

Completely oblivious of my hints he answered without giving it a second thought.

Observing me going silent he threw his assumption on me.

"Did you plan to meet someone alone here?" Probably he thought that I was about to meet someone in private.

"I planned to meet you, Ayanokouji-kun." I answered without any second thought as well.

Here my friend, have the taste of your own medicine.

We stared at each other for a second then he averted his gaze; apparently realizing what happened to me a moment ago. This is fun.

I walked to the railing standing beside him, staring at the horizon. I did not feel lonely anymore.

"Did you find anything about the traitor, Ayanokouji-kun?"

"I was taking things easy, we were at a stalemate before this exam began."

"True, how do you plan to tackle this special test?"

"By believing in you and Horikita."

"Really?"

"Yes, that group is full of brilliant students, gaining their attention would only invite more trouble for me."

Not this again. This guy can do it but he won't! Well it is not good to rely on him always either.

"I see, as promised I will make sure that no one finds out about you."

"That would be convenient."

We stood there in silence, his phone vibrated once. He took out his phone and typed something.

"What is the matter, Ayanokouji-ku-"

I stopped myself midway realizing it was not good for me to peek into his personal life, but he understood what I asked.

"Horikita is asking for our location, she will be here in a minute."

"Oh."

Shortly after that as predicted Horikita arrived, she was still in her jersey.

"What might you want to discuss?" She asked with a stern expression.

"I wanted to formulate a strategy for the special test."

"You do understand we can't formulate one as long as the VIPs are not decided right?"

"That is true for the Dragon group we are in, but I wanted to discuss the internal conflict of our class."

It dawned upon her what I wanted to talk about and her stern expression loosened up but her eyes remained serious.

"We might see the same treason as that on the island test." She spoke in a low voice.

"Yes, and it might be late if we discuss this after the VIPs are decided. Should we just jumble up the names like last time?"

I looked at Ayanokouji, like a child looking at an adult for answers.

"I don't think that would work this time." Horikita was the one to break the silence.

"Why would you say that Horikita-san?"

"True we took advantage of the disunity of our class, which is supposed to be the greatest disadvantage. But the key factor was the timing; we executed that strategy at the end phase of the test. Precisely speaking even if we change the names of VIP this time it will leak out in the span of four days no matter how hard we try to conceal it."

She is correct; the same strategy might not work twice. We both looked at Ayanokouji, wondering if he might give us a solution for this.

"We can't defend ourselves if that attack actually comes, our only way would be to fight valiantly and guess as many VIPs to neutralize the damage. Although there is a small chance that attack might not launch this time."

"On what basis do you have for that?" Horikita asked.

"If the traitor actually wanted points they would have got enough from the last test, continuing the same actions would only draw us closer to them at this point which might not be worth the points now."

I and Horikita nodded at his reasoning, but something felt off. After a moment of silence he spoke again.

"However, if the traitor has some other objective."

There was some unseen faith that I put on those words, somehow I had a strong gut feeling that it was the case. Horikita sharpened her focus.

"Naturally people chosen as VIP would share their names only with someone they trust absolutely."

A slight wind flew past us, he stopped speaking as if waiting for us to guess the next step.

"Then if the traitor makes a move, the list of suspects would narrow down significantly." I spoke in a soft voice.

"Precisely."

"That makes sense. How do you plan to find the names of VIPs?" Horikita asked.

"I can't."

"That was fast."

She looked at me, perhaps I was the one qualified here to do that task. Both of them were loners so if they started asking around for such sensitive information they would only return empty handed. Entrusting someone else to do this won't be a nice way to do it either.

"Okay I will try to investigate this matter." Without any plan in mind I agreed to do that.

After that we departed our ways, even at best we can only negate the damage when it comes. Attacking was the only way to defend.

My room was filled with other girls, some waiting for me and others with Kushida. The atmosphere was a little heavy due to the sudden announcement of a special test, but they were not feeling down; they were waiting for the fight with eyes filled with determination.

"Ichinose-san! The special test. What do we do?"

"Calm down, hear me out." Everyone fixed their gazes on me.

"This test is supposed to test our 'thinking'. I plan to take daily reports of the meetings of each group to analyze things on a bigger level. So I would like you all to gather with your group members of the same class every evening in one of your rooms. Of course I won't force you to do that, it is up to you to participate."

Taking a small pause I scanned the room, everyone seemed to understand where this was going.

"Those ready for it please raise your hands."

All of them raised their hands in unison, a feeling of warmth was felt inside me. My eyes met those of Matsushita-san raising her hand beside Mii-chan. I will have to come up with a story afterwards as for why I was not present in the room.

"Very well then, tomorrow morning once the VIPs are appointed I would like to hold our first meeting one by one in the rooms. Members decide the room among themselves and text me accordingly tonight."

"Ichinose-san, there are some girls from our group that are not present here."

"Please try to persuade them for participation, that being said don't force it upon them."

The girls of Karuizawa-san's group were absent here, perhaps Hirata will be able to talk them into it.

I initially planned to gather everyone in one room and discuss, but the shy members might not open up to me with so much audience. On top of that the existence of the traitor was preventing that to begin with.

"I will try to ask the boys of your groups, to cooperate."

Hearing the mention of boys girls tensed up, true it will be hard to reunite the two factions as whole but they will loosen up when dealt alone.

This way I will be able to discover the VIPs of our class and also monitor the traitor closely. It pains me to think that one of those in this room might be a traitor.

"Ichinose-san what about your own group?" Kushida asked out of concern.

"Horikita-san is taking charge of leading that group, and not to mention we also have Matsushita-san in it." I gave a small wink to Matsushita and she winked back.

"That is nice, you two have helped us a lot on the island as well."

"Yes, you all secured so many points."

"We won because we had you on our side."

The enthusiasm from the previous victory was coursing through the girls, they had a lot of faith in me and Horikita. No way I am going to disappoint them.

"Haha that was done, we must give it our all in this test."

"YESS!!!" Everyone shouted in unison.

After a little chit chat the visitors left the room. Its refreshing to taste the unity our class has gained over time. But just like an orange that seems one from outside but is divided from inside, our class was also facing internal conflict.

At night I received the timings and rooms for the different meetings, I contacted Hirata to ask Karuizawa for cooperation. Apparently some of the girls in her group were ready while others including Karuizawa were not into it.

The next morning once the VIPs were decided I contacted Horikita-san, in order to avoid any records she said she would tell me about the situation in person. The names were out by 9:00 AM and our first meeting was at 1:00 PM so I had plenty of time to visit every group member.

The purpose of the morning meetings is basically to gather the names of VIPs of our class more than strategizing since students have not even met the other group members yet.

I invested less time on the group without a VIP from our class since all they could do was to be alert and cautious of any other student that may try to feed them false information. Most of the people showed me their phones without any reluctance. Interestingly, I came across only two VIPs from our class. The strategy was to simply observe for the first day and not act nervous, pretty obvious but when you have someone who would listen to your troubles it makes the weight on you a little lighter.

The second last group had Kushida, Hirata and Mii-chan. They were one of the best line up our class could offer, so they did not take up much time.

About 12 o'clock I met Horikita and Matsushita sitting in my room, others were probably out for lunch. Since there were supposed to be 3 VIPs in each class if we went with equal division I had assumed the last VIP was among the girls I did not investigate or in our group.

"So is there a VIP from our class?" I asked out directly.

Horikita and Matsushita took out their phones as if there was nothing to hide about it, on looking closely they had the very same messages as mine just with different names.

"So none of us is VIP, huh?"

"Yeah, I wanted to be the VIP so much, we would have scored so many private points." said Matsushita in a playful tone.

"And if you were discovered our class would have suffered a loss of 50 class points." But Horikita shot down the flying Matsushita.

"Only Ayanokouji-kun remains now."

As I spoke we heard a knock on the door, perhaps our last member was here. Ayanokouji entered the room and we had a moment of awkward silence.

"Was calling me on the girl's floor really necessary?"

"Chill out dude, guys and girls are roaming on each other's floor planning things out and all. It is normal." Matsushita consoled him.

"Are you the VIP?" Horikita cut to the chase immediately.

"No, I am not."

"Prove it."

He took out his phone and passed it to me, on reading the email I concluded he was not the VIP either. A feeling of relief coursed through me, the VIP was not from our class. I gave Horikita a slight nod and she nodded back.

That means that the third VIP from our class is in Karuizawa's group.

"How should we proceed now?" I asked

"We observe the other classes for today, each one of us should keep an eye on each class. I will keep an eye on Class C, Ayanokouji and Matsushita can observe Class B."

She spoke in a graceful manner, just what I would expect from her. She even managed to provide Ayanokouji some cover by adding Matsushita with him.

"That leaves Class A for me."

"Yes. That being said there is no reason to be fixated on one class the whole time, checking out the other classes will also help to unravel more mysteries. All I am asking is to focus more on one of them than others."

She truly had an unwavering resolve to go up against Ryuuen alone.

"In case we start getting attacked we can either attack back or lure the enemy into believing one of us is a VIP."

"That is a sound strategy, but everyone has to keep up with the pace. We might need to come up with lies on the spot and the rest of us will have to follow the lead." I stated.

"Can you two keep up, Matsushita? Ayanokouji?"

"I will try my best!"

"Don't expect much from me."

Both of them answered enthusiastically. . . . okay at least one of them did.

Chapter- 5

Chapter- 5

Four of us reached the appointed room half an hour before the given time, the lower deck was a little crowded as it seemed like many students were here to see who belongs to which group.

We entered the empty room and took our seats. The chairs were arranged in a big circle, perhaps to promote discussion. We sat beside each other. I and Horikita took the middle seat, Ayanokouji sat beside Horikita and Matsushita was on my side.

"Seems like it will have time to talk at length," Horikita mentioned.

"Well, it works for us."

I did not exactly state that it worked for us because we didn't have the VIP in our class, I don't want someone to accidentally or intentionally overhear us.

We were far too early than the designated time. We had nothing to do, maybe I should check around if this room has any voice recorders set in it by school. But even if it did have any, I doubt we would find it easily.

Horikita took out her phone and got immersed in it, she was not very talkative with most students so I wonder what she might be doing in it.

"Ichinose-san, how are things going with the other groups?" Matsushita broke the ice.

"I would say everyone is quite pumped up. The results of the island test have increased the morale of the whole class."

"Sounds cool, by the way... . . ."

We chatted with each other in a low voice as Horikita used her phone and Ayanokouji sat on his seat staring at the door. We would occasionally involve those two but they would leave once their part was said.

After 10 more minutes, with a click, the door opened. I stared at it in anticipation, trying to guess who might it be.

Kanzaki entered the room with other members of his class, he was a little surprised to see us. Through the open door two people were visible, they were Ryuuen and Katsuragi.

They both stood facing each other as if staring at their prey, Katsuragi's face was still in battle mode just like it was in the gym. But right now he looked prepared more than worried.

Kanzaki took a seat beside Matsushita and the other members of his class followed him in succession.

"Nice to meet you again, Ichinose."

"Nice to meet you as well, Kanzaki-kun."

"It seems like the results of the island test took a rather unexpected turn for all the classes."

"Haha, seems so."

If I remember right, then his class scored approximately 80 points. Just if we would not have been able to guess their leader they would have been in Class A this very moment. He had successfully closed his distance to the top, this is a deciding test for him and his class. I wonder how he will progress.

"The lower classes surely had closed distance with the upper classes, you all became a potential threat now."

"Well, you did refrain from helping us when we asked for help. Perhaps you were right to be cautious of us."

"Not that it matters now, after this test our class will ascend to become Class A and we will keep rising."

"Seems like you have a plan for it."

"Of course. I wonder if you all have a plan."

"We will see soon."

Matsushita kept looking at us one by one as if trying to grasp which of us will outdo the other. More members stepped into the room soon.

"What do we have here?"

"An unfortunate coincidence."

Ryuuen's voice made everyone else silent. Even Kanzaki stiffened up a little, but Horikita answered him without any hesitation.

"It is an interesting coincidence, hope you put up a good show for me. Suzune," as if intentionally to throw her off he added her name in the end.

"How many times do I need to warn you to not use my first name freely?"

Ryuuen chuckled in an irritating way. Taking his seat he started scanning the other members. His eyes stopped at Matsushita, as if trying to figure out why she was here. I gave him a dry smile when his gaze caught mine, and he flashed his annoying grin.

He took a seat beside Ayanokouji. This does not look good for Ayanokouji, hopefully Horikita takes care of things on her side. Beside Ryuuen sat Kaneda, he was top on the academic leaderboard of Class C last time I checked it.

Beside Kaneda was a white haired girl, she looked at everyone with a calming smile. Perhaps she is the one called Shiina Hiyori.

Katsuragi sat opposite to us, monitoring the flow of things carefully. Once everyone was seated it was time to bear our fangs at each other.

"It is time, we should introduce ourselves," I announced in a polite tone.

Kanzaki taking my lead continued with the introductions by his class, every class did that since it was the first assigned test to start the test.

"So what is the plan here?"

Once everyone was done introducing, Ryuuen was the first one to speak up. He looked at Kanzaki as he spoke.

"I would like to hear what Katsuragi has to say before offering my own opinion."

Speaking in a collected manner Kanzaki threw the ball in Katsuragi's court. All the gazes landed on Katsuragi, as if waiting for him to make his move.

"I don't plan to do anything, talking is not the best move for this test."

Everyone stared at him with question marks hanging over their heads, the students beside Katsuragi nodded in sync. Perhaps it was preplanned.

"How do you plan to find the VIP without talking?" Kanzaki inquired.

"It is simple, I don't plan to." Katsuragi answered instantly as if expecting it.

"Huh?" I made a sound unintentionally.

"Discussing will only invite more confusion and misunderstanding, then someone will make a mistake for the VIP and end up taking damage."

Something felt off in his words, it might be true one would avoid mistakes that way. But was it really the solution to the test?

Ryuuen, Kanzaki and Horikita stared at him sharply, but he sat there with his arms crossed.

Only one phrase popped into mind, 'Nothing ventured, nothing gained.'

Playing safe was never an option, I had decided well before the test started that attacking was the only defense for us. And Katsuragi was sitting there trying to crush that motivation of mine by suddenly asking everyone to give up on fighting and sit silently like sages.

"Interesting opinion," Ryuuen said in a sarcastic manner.

"You just want to play safe Katsuragi. We are here to discuss things and find the VIP, not just come and go then let the them escape."

Kanzaki said it as an indirect attack.

"I understand that this test is about our 'thinking', but that does not mean it nullifies the demand of 'communication'."

I launched my attacks as well.

"You all can discuss as much as you want, Class A will not be participating in it."

He didn't even attempt to defend his opinion, perhaps he understood that his words were fooling no one. We all could not force him to conversate either, Ryuuen's palm twitched from anger but he adapted to the situation soon.

All class A students stood up and gained some distance from the circle. They were far but still well within the earshot, so they can actually hear us.

"Kukuku, you won't escape me, Katsuragi." Ryuuen said in a menacing tone as he looked at Katsuragi sitting afar.

"How do you plan for us to proceed, Kanzaki-kun?" I asked Kanzaki.

Kanzaki looked at Katsuragi one last time and sighed.

"I would say let us discuss everything fairly amongst each other, if by the end any of us is not sure who the VIP is then we can sign a deal with VIP for pursuing Outcome#1."

"Now, what nonsense are you spouting?" Ryuuen snapped.

Indeed it was not funny anymore how both the leaders are coming up with bizarre ideas.

"Hear me out calmly, it is actually possible."

"Let us assume that I make an online group consisting of all members of 'dragon group'. You all join it with anonymous accounts, where we sign a memorandum," He waited for a moment to see other's reactions.

"A memorandum about what?" Horikita did not give him much time though.

"All four classes pool a certain amount of points, say 100,000, for the VIP. We will ask the VIP to reveal their identity not just after the test is over, but in the last half hour window provided by school to pursue Outcome#1 or #2. We all will submit the given name and if the name is correct then we will pay VIP the given amount of points."

[Author's note: I will try to take a reference from real LN about this; In volume 1 chapter 5 Ichinose posts a question on school form asking for information on Sudou and Class C. At that time when she receives an answer from an anonymous account Ayanokouji helps her to pay the mysterious helper (also the time when he discovers that Ichinose has an insane amount of points). Kanzaki is also talking about same method to pay the VIP]

"Sounds good, but what if the VIP does not want to reveal their name due to privacy issues?"

"Indeed, in case the VIP holds higher value for their privacy than gaining more than double the reward then it can't be helped. This might not work either if the VIP is in a Class that already receives a large amount of private points each month and would not want other classes to get more private points."

Kanzaki said as he looked at Katsuragi, then he continued. Ryuuen heard him out with a bored expression on his face.

"But still, if we all can't find the VIP by the end of the test or let's say someone has a rough idea but does not want to take risk of mistaking then following this solution would be the ideal choice."

His strategy was truly exceptional, it could actually work in groups with underconfident students and maybe in this group as well but it would have a slim chance. That makes me feel that there is some other hidden intention behind his move.

Perhaps he plans to crush our motivations to find the VIP by giving us an easy way out of this. I sense that he wanted to play safe like Katsuragi but he knows this is his chance to actually climb up, so he devised a strategy that would keep most of the unconfident groups safe from penalties while the elite groups of his class garner points.

"Tch, useless." Ryuuen rolled his eyes once Kanzaki was done.

"Perhaps we will discuss this strategy in more detail in the penultimate stages of the test."

I curbed his poison before it could reach other members, if they relied on this strategy then they will not participate in discussion with the vigour they should and end up losing a chance to gain class points.

"Kukuku, how do you plan to do this, Ichinose?" I felt a little relieved by the fact that he did not use my first name.

"I would like to hear you out first, Ryuuen-kun. You are in a superior class than me." Although it was true, I had a hint of sarcasm in my words.

"It is simple, I know the names of all the VIPs of Class C, if three classes sitting here share the information about all VIPs then we can easily bypass the school rules. We will crush Class A with this once and for all."

That sounds like some nonsense only Ryuuen can say, one after another each leader came up with nonsensical ideas and I had the same for them. Perhaps what seems senseless now will take shape into a heinous weapon as the test matures.

On hearing Ryuuen, Katsuragi's expression which supposedly did not have any room left to grow stiffer just grew stiffer.

I was asked to monitor him but actually there is nothing much to monitor about him since he is pretty much silent.

"This plan is pretty unrealistic, it would have been a little credible if it was proposed by anyone except you," Horikita shot down his bold idea without thinking twice.

"How do we know that you have all the Class C VIPs?" asked Kanzaki.

No one was ready to believe him.

"It's natural that you wouldn't trust me. In that case, why don't we make a contract? We'll pledge to share the identities of our three VIPs and go after Class A. That way, our three classes will benefit, but Class A won't."

"The possibility of someone turning traitor kills that proposal we don't know when you or I might turn traitor, Ryuuen," Kanzaki pointed out.

"Let's say I turn traitor, even then you will have the names of the VIPs of my class. You can always use them to get back to me."

Ryuuen was not backing off either.

Kanzaki went deep into thoughts, perhaps he was considering Ryuuen's plan.

"I have to disagree with Ryuuen-kun, even if a Class turns traitor we will not know which one did it. Let's say Class D gives all the names of your VIP before the test ends, you will not be able to find out if it was Class D or Class B that actually did it."

"I have a very simple solution to that Ichinose; it is to kick you out of this deal. If only two classes do it then there will be no room for confusion."

"Do you think only you two alone can do it? I doubt it would be sufficient to take down Class A," Horikita spoke up.

"Getting Class D into this deal is simply a waste of time, there's no denying that. Even if Suzune wanted to agree, there's a reason why she can't," said Ryuuen.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Horikita.

"You already know what I'm getting at, don't you? For this strategy to

work, you need to understand your own class perfectly. For Class D, which lacks any spirit of teamwork, this is an impossible undertaking. right? It's also impossible for Class A, since they're split into two factions."

Ryuuen touched the sour spot of our class. He caught Katsuragi's attention this time.

"The results of the island test said otherwise," Horikita made a comeback using our splendid results from the last test.

"That bluff would have worked on anyone but me, Suzune."

Indeed, Ryuuen remained unfazed whenever those results were brought up. Our conversation last time proved that he had many things figured out already.

This is not heading in the right direction.

"Hm? Bluff?" Kanzaki looked at Ryuuen with a questioning expression.

"Their leader was changed on the last day on the island, do you know of anyone among these apes who can actually think of that?"

Katsuragi and his class looked at the events unfold with even greater interest than before, just by looking at him I know that he is playing the island test in his mind to find the hidden links.

"I did figure out that the leader was changed but now that you say I wonder who would have been the one to come up with that idea."

Kanzaki said as he looked at me. But before I can speak to provide some cover Ryuuen spoke up again.

"Indeed, there are some suspicious characters, for instance take this moron sitting beside me." Ryuuen slithered his arm around Ayanokouji's shoulder.

"What about him?"

"Not only was he the leader that retired but on top of that he is placed in Dragon group, which has the star players of each class. Don't you say someone like him might be the one pulling the strings behind the scenes?"

My heart was about to freeze but there was no time for that.

"Ryuuen, even after knowing that our leader has been changed you made a mistake in guessing the new leader. And now you are trying to target someone like Ayanokouji?" I had found the opening to launch the attack.

"How pathetic." (Horikita)

"What? You knew the leader was replaced?" Kanzaki tried his best to sound calm, but his tone grew sharp.

According to what Ayanokouji explained Class B and Class C seemed like they were in a cooperative relationship. At the end of the island test Ryuuen had mentioned he had names of leaders of two classes and our class was one of them, that leaves Class A and B. He also mentioned that other Classes had written our name and given the low score of Class A it is safe to assume that Class B was the other Class that had the name of our leader.

It just dawned upon me. Moments ago when Ryuuen was talking about our strategy, the fact that we fooled the whole class would have sounded more convincing to prove the existence of a mysterious leader but still Ryuuen did not mention it to Kanzaki. On top of that Kanzaki did not mention getting the name of any new leader either, that means there was a slight chance Ryuuen had betrayed Kanzaki and not given him the name of the replaced leader.

Once I figured out that opening I pounced at it, even though my heart was racing fast I had kept my breathing and voice controlled.

Ryuuen gave a broad grin to Kanzaki and that was when the trust Kanzaki put on Ryuuen was broken, looking at Ryuuen's expression he apparently expected it to happen at one point but not now.

"I see, so that is how it is," Kanzaki composed himself.

"I must say that I won't be willing to cooperate with you in this VIP exchange plan of your Ryuuen."

Topic had shifted smoothly far from Ayanokouji, but Ryuuen still had his arm over his shoulder.

"Now that you know that, I will tell you I guessed the wrong name of the leader. Do you know why?"

"You were played by them twice, it was a double trap." Kanzaki said in a sharp voice.

"Exactly, who do you think would be able to play me twice?"

Kanzaki looked at Ayanokouji, who was sitting silently without moving a muscle. If he appeared even a little flustered Ryuuen would pounce upon him. It was uncanny how all 3 of us were acting so calmly in this desperate situation while the other students existed on an undefined level of confusion.

"Are you saying that it is this guy?" Kanzaki asked.

"You never know."

"Well, I'm sorry, but what you're saying is complete nonsense. It's a child's excuse, used because he's upset that he lost and needs to resort to fantasy. Does it embarrass you that two girls managed to see through your schemes?" Horikita took the lead this time.

Ryuuen tried to ignore her as if she made no sense, but the seed of doubt had germinated in Kanzaki by now.

"You are stupid Horikita, you can't think of a strategy of that level."

"I have got nothing to tell you about my strategy."

"Are you sure that this is the guy, Ryuuen?" Kanzaki brought the topic back to Ayanokouji!

"Perhaps, on sniffing around I found out that this guy was actually sick. So he might not be the one but him being in this group makes me have other ideas."

"I see."

"Anyways, The fact that you are in this group must mean that you have some connection to the one I am talking about, tell whoever it is that better stay low until I reach Class A." Ryuuen turned to Ayanokouji and spoke. But Ayanokouji remained silent.

After a moment of silence he spoke.

"Horikita, can you explain all this to me again?" Although he said it in an apathetic tone, he sounded genuinely confused.

"Pfff." Matsushita-san beside me chuckled.

Ryuuen got his hands off Ayanokouji out of disgust.

"So you have kept him in the dark as well."

"You asked me to put up a show for you, but you entertained me well with your's, Ryuuen. Hope you can face reality soon."

Horikita said it like some teacher who rebuked their student for getting the wrong answer and is now waiting for the student to get the right answer in the next attempt.

"I think we can discuss what happened in the last test after this session ends, for now we should focus on the ongoing test." I changed the topic again, this was a close call.

"Seems like no one is going to follow your plan now." Horikita reprimanded him again. But Ryuuen knew that he would need to change his strategy soon.

There was a moment of silence then Kanzaki looked at the watch placed in the room.

"I would have liked to hear your thoughts, Ichinose. But it seems like this session has come to an end." Kanzaki had regained his composure back by now, apparently he was in a hurry to have a private discussion with Ryuuen.

"Haha, sure thing. I will let you know next time I guess."

With that the session ended and all four of us left, followed by Class A. I must say most of the students were silent all along this meeting as a result I caught them spacing out at times, but among all of them I felt that the girl named Shiina Hiyori never lost focus even once. Same can be said for Matsushita, somehow I have a feeling that these two were able to extract a rough idea of what was going on from the conversation of the Dragon group.

(Author's note: I opened a new discord server dedicated to Classroom of the elite and specifically Ichinose.

Link:https: https/discord.gg/eWrrMfV5Bt (also present in comment section)

Your choice to join, would be happy to see you there.)

Chapter- 6

Chapter- 6
As I walked to the girl's deck with Horikita and Matsushita accompanying me, my phone suddenly started to beep. One after another, the notifications didn't stop.

Upon checking, I found multiple mails by my classmates, all of them boiled down to the same message; 'Class A is not ready to talk'.

"Um, can I ask what it is?" Matsushita asked in a wary tone, not sure to peek into my personal space.

"Apparently in the other groups as well Class A is not ready to talk at all, perhaps the strategy of playing it safe has been adopted by the whole class and not only the students of Class A in our group."

"I see, so Katsuragi has raised his defenses to the extreme." Horikita concluded.

"Seemingly."

We walked to the deck in silence, each trying to analyze the strategy Class A had put up and a counter to the same. The whole ship had a wary atmosphere, nothing similar to what it was two days ago. Class A had just made an enemy out of the whole school, one might think it is out of confidence but Class B is putting up a vigilant fight and can very well overtake them by this test. So it was not a choice for Katsuragi, rather he was forced to do so.

I typed a common message and sent it to everyone who had mailed me about Class A's strategy.
Let's think individually about this and share our strategies in the group meeting we have in the evening.

"I think I will have lunch before returning to rooms."
"So you weren't able to have lunch due to all those meetings, huh?" Horikita asked.

"Yeah, I will join you two once I'm done."

Matsushita and Horikita nodded , I went ahead of them lost in my thoughts.

The restaurant was almost empty, probably because everyone had their lunch before the meeting. I saw Hirata eating alone, perhaps he was in the same predicament as me. As I changed my direction to approach him I saw a pack of girls led by Karuizawa moving towards the oblivious Hirata from behind. Looking at the series of events unfold I just changed my direction back to the original path.

Since I asked others to think individually I don't think anyone would approach me for now. Shortly after I took my seat and ordered, the food arrived. I forgot about everything going on to take a break and enjoyed the luxurious food.

Half way through my lunch, Katsuragi entered the restaurant with Yahiko. He just looked around as if searching someone, since he left soon I assume the one who he was searching was not here.

Without paying much thought to it I continued my lunch, I felt recharged once I was done eating.

Returning to the room I found Mii-chan sitting alone on her bed lost in thoughts.
"Mii-chan! Why the long face?!" I surprised her intentionally, perking her up.

"Honami-san! Class A! Not speaking!"

Oh no, she is completely rushed. Keeping up with a group filled with individuals on the level of Hirata and Kushida is taking its toll on her, that too after the first meeting.

"Simmer down, Mii-chan. Test is about 'thinking', don't overthink things. Have faith in Hirata and Kushida."
Her expression loosened up on hearing my words, Class A has successfully thrown the other classes into a disarray.

"But I will become dead weight if I don't do anything." She said in a low voice with her head down.

"If you overthink then you might end up making a mistake, that will put you in a worse spot. Discuss your thoughts with Hirata and Kushida, I will also join you all in the evening meeting."

Hope filled her eyes again as she faced me. I am sure if she shares her pain with Hirata and Kushida then they can help her recover from the blow Katsuragi delivered.

"Thanks, Ichinose-san."

I patted her head lightly reassuring her that she is not alone. We still had a few hours left before the next meeting tonight at eight so I decided to take a nap. Setting up an alarm I could sleep carefree now.

I sank into my bed, a nap after a good meal is the best. Slowly my consciousness faded away and I found myself back in my hometown.

It was morning, I was standing on the road that led to my previous school. /gallery/2sTmy?epik=dj0yJnU9dUVQbXJiRmhhNTJqS05ybk5weHZqQUJ6dU1PdnAzcS0mcD0wJm49LV9uWnduemZBSTdIVzc1YmN4a0ljUSZ0PUFBQUFBR0FXbWM0 )

My house was near the outskirts of the town we lived in, so I usually left for the school earlier than most. The sun was still rising and the orange light made its way through the cracks of the dense canopy, and a gentle breeze brushed my cheeks.

Walking on this silent road as the sky takes on these vivid hues is something I can never forget, it is just something that I did everyday but it gave a sense of peace like nothing else.

But to my surprise when I advanced I found myself in front of a tunnel, beside it was another underpass and beside it another. I turned back only to find the road had disappeared and there were more tunnel openings. It was not communicated to me directly but something within me knew that choosing the wrong way can lead me to ruins. The weather grew cloudy and there was a feeling of haste to choose the path.

Amidst the dark atmosphere a cute music made its way into my head, I rubbed my eyes and woke up.

It took me a few seconds to identify the individuals sitting in my room, but I soon realized that the people from my class in the dragon group were in my room and not my roommates.

Horikita, Ayanokouji and Matsushita stared at me in silence, to make things more awkward, the cute music of my alarm was still playing as we blankly stared at each other.

Beep

I dismissed the alarm and took a second to think as I looked at my screen.

It was not that awkward of a moment right? Like this was nothing compared to sneezing out a mouthful of water in Ayanokouji's room. Smile returned to my face and I lifted my head up again.

"So, what's up with the sudden visit?"

"We were just discussing the information we gathered about each class in Dragon group."

"I see, that makes sense. What do you have to say about Class C Horikita-san?"

"Ryuuen was just trying to rush Ayanokouji. I think the girl named Shiina Hiyori is quite an attentive one, but since I don't know much about her personality I can't comment if we can lure her into believing one of us is a VIP."

"That is true. Since Katsuragi and his group refrained from communicating, there was not much to observe about them."

Horikita and I looked at Ayanokouji and Matsushita, asking for any details they had on Class B. Ayanokouji did not look like he was about to say anything, observing this Matsushita spoke up.

"I didn't understand a thing you all were talking about, like in the end Ichinose-san said something about Ryuuen knowing about the new leader then Kanzaki snapped on him and all of the blaming on the oblivious Ayanokouji."

Well, this was bound to happen sooner or later.

"Matsushita-san, that was some talk about the leaders on the island test. Explaining details of the previous test to you both will only kill time and might even create more confusion, I don't think that there will be discussion on it again in the Dragon group so you can ignore it for now."

Matsuhita, who was looking for an explanation, only received orders to kill her curiosity for the past. She looked at Ayanokouji who was sitting there like a rock.

"Are you okay with this? Like that guy was literally harassing you there, don't you want to know the reason why you are in this situation?"

She tried using Ayanokouji to dig deeper into the matter, but little did she know Ayanokouji was well aware of the reasons that fueled the event.

"I feel like digging deeper will only brew more trouble for me, so I will pass." Ayanokouji answered after a moment of silence.

It looked like Matsushita was having a hard time trying to understand his disinterest in the matter, but eventually she gave up. Even if her curiosity might be killing her right now, as this test progresses she is bound to lose focus on unraveling the last test.

"If this is all we had to talk about then I will take my leave now." Horikita said as she stood up.

"Let's meet after dinner in the meeting room."

She slightly nodded and left the room.

"I will also take my leave now."

As Ayanokouji moved out Matsushita stared at him as if looking at some other creature. I can't help but chuckle internally on her state, I know this feeling all too well.

"Well it is what it is, I guess." She said.

"Yeah. wanna have some coffee?"

"Sure thing, let's grab one from Blue Ocean"
(Author's note: For those who don't know, it is the name of the cafeteria on Speranza. Don't kill me later if I am wrong)

Once we were done with coffee, I received a call from Hirata. Apparently he was also in a bind with all this going on, on top of that to search for a traitor amidst all this must be getting to him. Hopefully Ayanokouji and Horikita are working on it.

Soon it was time for the next meeting, all of us gathered in the designated room again to find the VIP. We sat in the same order as the last time.

Previous meeting all the other leaders just proposed strategies which came off as some bizzare move, but later some made sense while some didn't.

"So Ichinose-san, last time we ran out of time. I would like to hear your strategy to tackle this test."

Well Kanzaki you asked for it.

"Let's play a game of King, minister, thief and soldier."

Without looking at anyone's expression I took out the chits, I am pretty sure they think I am spouting some nonsense.

"Uh, how is it played?" Kanzaki asked with uncertainty.

"I am glad you asked-"

"This game involves four players; each player takes up the role of either King, Minister, Police or thief.

The game begins with making 4 paper chits namely King with 1000 points, Minister with 800 points, Thief with 0 points and Police with 500 points. Each chit is folded-shuffled and distributed among 4 players with each player picking one chit. Players can open their respective chit to find out their character which shall not be revealed to anybody else except for the players who got King and Police"

"So the King and Police are supposed to reveal their identities?"

"Kanzaki, you aren't considering playing this, are you-" Kaneda asked. But Ryuuen just waved his hand to silence him.

"Continue Ichinose."

Ryuuen seemed interested in the game. Given the structure of the game, Ryuuen would be one of the deadliest players..

"Yes, the King declares his identity and Police is supposed to identify the Thief among the two players who still have their identity concealed."

"What will happen if the Police guess wrong?" Horikita asked.

"The player playing as Police will lose his 500 points to the player playing Thief."
"I see."

"So basically in every round, the King is announced and he watches as the Police reveals himself and tries to guess the Thief from the two players who are playing as Minister and Thief but still have their identity concealed." Kaneda summed it up.

"Initially I planned for one participant from each class to participate for each round, but since Class A denies discussion I guess one of the classes will have two participants and then in the next round another class and so on. And at the end of every round we can reward points to each class accordingly."

"In that case if let's say that my class has two members in one round, one is Police and the other is Minister. Then the minister would simply hint to the Police so that my class would receive the most points, that would just be unfair for the one who is Thief in that round."

Kanzaki already managed to find a loophole in the game.

"True, I came up with this plan assuming a participant from each class. But now it has developed a loophole just as you pointed out."

"It doesn't matter, it is a nice game, let's play it anyways." Ryuuen supported the game even with its loophole.

"Yeah, it does involve luck but I think life also works the same way so let's play it." Kanzaki agreed.

"We will catch up with rules along the way, if any of you have any doubts then ask me freely."
After a moment of brief silence I asked each Class to choose their player. It was decided for the first round our class will send the two people.

Ryuuen represented his class and Kanzaki came up from his side, looking at that there was no other option but for me and Horikita to jump into the play.

I threw the cheats on the table, and each four of us picked one.

"Kukukuku, I am the King." Ryuuen declared his identity laying his chit on the table.

"I am the Police." Kanzaki stated.

That leaves me and Horikita.

Chapter- 7

Chapter- 7 (Ayanokouji's POV)

The papers were distributed, unlike the others, Kanzaki swiftly checked the expression of the other three players once he was aware of his role. Judging from his sudden need for observation, I guess his role is of The Police.

"Kukukuku, I am the King." Ryuuen revealed his identity.

"I am the Police."

All eyes turned towards Ichinose and Horikita who sat side by side. One of these two individuals is the thief while the other is the minister, if Kanzaki chooses wrong then he loses all his points to the thief.

Kanzaki looked at Horikita who met his gaze head on, since it was her regular response, her expression did not reveal any information. The correct move here would be to search for clues in the activities of the other member rather than postulating anything.

He averted his gaze to Ichinose, who smiled as usual. However, on looking carefully you can understand the smile did not reach her eyes like it did under normal circumstances. Her eyes met those of Kanzaki yet for a split second they instinctively escaped his gaze, she returned them to focus as soon as she possibly could but they were enough to hint something odd.

It all happened in a matter of seconds, anyone who got distracted even for an instance would have lost the event.

"Kanzaki-kun, I must inform you that there is a time limit of two minutes for the Police to catch the thief."

Ichinose stated, but Kanzaki just peered into her eyes.

"I understand." He answered after a brief moment of silence.

Since keeping up a false facade puts people under considerable stress, it was understandable that there was a time limit given to catch the thief, or else the police could just stall some time until the thief exhausts themselves and grows negligent.

A minute passed, Kanzaki looked at Ichinose and Horikita periodically.

"I have made my decision." He declared.

(A/N: Now is your chance folks, place your bets.)

At the center of attention Kanzaki announced his answer.

"The Thief is Ichinose."

Everyone turned to Ichinose. Yes, even Class A who were not participating were also following the same pattern.

After a moment of silence, a genuine smile returned to Ichinose's face. She opened the folded paper in her hand and showed it to Kanzaki.

"I am the Minister, you have the wrong person. Sir." She said in a playful tone playing her role-playing her character.

"Kukuku, very interesting." Ryuuen mused.

Kanzaki just stared at Horikita who was the Thief of this round. He retried to figure out her unflinching expression, but she just handed him the folded paper she had. Opening it up he confirmed his loss.

I personally think that there wasn't much Kanzaki could have done in this round. Since he alone went against two of the Class D's star players, there was a very high possibility that those two would do their best to mislead him. Nevertheless, the round was played splendidly by Ichinose and Horikita as well. Although misleading was the natural solution, both of them opted for the same unspoken deception. Had an individual messed their part up, Kanzaki would have ended this death match without any delay.

Ichinose, who did not buckle under the pressure of Ryuuen pinpointing my contribution in the island test, would not crack under these lenient circumstances. But Kanzaki is oblivious to the fact that she had been lying at that time, it was only me and Horikita who knew that she wouldn't lose her calm in a situation like that. This also concludes that Kanzaki believes that she had been defending truth against Ryuuen, because had he had any doubts that Ichinose was lying so confidently at that time, he would have easily figured out that she was acting nervous on purpose in this round.

Her innocent looks would easily lead anyone into assuming she is incapable of deception, but this round had proven otherwise.

The points were awarded to each class according to the results, Class D at top with 1300 points (800 by Ichinose as the minister and 500 by Horikita stolen from Kanzaki) while Class C at second with 1000 points and Class B at last with no points.

"Hope this round makes the mechanism of the game clear to all present here."

Students of Dragon group nodded showing agreement, a Class A student was also nodding but he stopped as soon as he noticed Katsuragi glaring at him.

"I propose that we play this game for the rest of the meetings when we don't have anything particular to discuss. We can always stop the game if a Class has a strategy to discuss to find VIP or any other important topic, but in other cases I think it is a nice game to pass time as well as to get to know each other. So what do you all say?" Ichinose completed her proposal by giving a live example.

"Accepted." Kanzaki answered after a brief moment of silence. Other students of Class B also agreed following his lead.

Ichinose turned to Ryuuen, who had been passive for all this time due to his role being inactive in the last round.

"Very well, I will find the VIP while we all play this." He announced.

"I would like to see that happen." Horikita said.

I agree with this game as well. Since if the VIP is from a Class other than A, then he or she would have to undergo an additional amount of lying and probing which would exhaust them even faster over the course of this test. Although this method is not surefire there is good chance that it would eventually create a slight opening for the other people to pounce on the VIP.

"Looks like the meeting is nearing its end." Kanzaki said, looking at the clock installed in the room.

The bell rang, Class A was the first to leave. Everyone stared at them as they left, their strategy would render all of our efforts to find VIP among the rest of the three classes useless, if their class had the VIP.

Other members left the room, I left the room with my classmates shortly. We went together till the boy's deck and there we separated our ways, although it might have appeared that I was about to go to my room I had no such plan like that. Encountering Kouenji was not something one would look forward to. I decided to stroll around the ship to kill time.

The move Katsuragi has played will make an enemy out of the whole school. He has trapped himself in an iron castle, while Ryuuen is preparing to bring him down he must breach the castle with every ounce of strength at his disposal. Since he won't get any support from the other classes now, due to his reputation. On the other hand, Kanzaki is ready to risk his Class position if it means to take down the Class A, even if he ends up letting Ryuuen close the gap between them. Amidst this war, our Class can only hope to minimize damage and smoke the traitor out.

By now Ichinose would be meeting up with different groups, collecting information on their situation. It was close to midnight by now and I should return to my room as well. As I moved towards my deck, my cell phone beeped. The text was from Ichinose.

I have some new info, I think we should meet up.

With the specifications to minimum, she asked me and Horikita to assemble. Generally such a small text would irritate Horikita, but being specific would only lead to leaving behind more records than necessary.

I reached the meeting place on time, to find both of them already there. In the moonlight both of them looked so beautiful that my heart pounded a little faster than usual.

"I have names of two VIP from our class." She spoke in a low voice.

"Who are they?" Horikita asked.

They were talking in low voices since the risk of being eavesdropped ran high, even at this hour of the day. Being seen with these two was within itself but that was something we could recover over time, on the other hand losing names of the VIP of our class would prove to be an instant death.

"Satsuki Shinohara and Kikyo Kushida are the VIP of their respective groups."

"I see."

After a brief moment of silence Horikita noticed something out of place.

"Shouldn't there have been at least three VIP from our class?" Horikita asked.

"I think the third VIP is from the group of girls that Karuizawa-san leads, since some of them are not contacting me at all." Ichinose stated the students that were out of her radar.

"Makes sense. Kushida and her group were prime suspects of the traitor, I think the better move would be to follow the trail of Shinohara." Proposed Horikita.

"I agree, she is also a close friend so it would be easy to track the people who she has revealed her identity as the VIP."

"Still it will be perilous to follow the trail to perfection. She would share secrets with Ichinose, but I am not sure if other people who she shares her identity would do the same." I pointed to the tough part of the plan.

"Then we should just ask how many people have she told about her identity and ask her to not share it with anyone else." Horikita suggested a progression.

Ichinose pulled out her phone and texted something. Within a few seconds her phone beeped again.

"I asked Shinohara-san, according to her she has only told Kushida-san and Mii-chan about it. Even her teammates don't know about it yet because she doesn't trust the other boys yet."

The last part was expected but still. .

Kushida is a VIP herself, if she obtains the identity of other VIPs she will be having all the VIPs name. She won't share this secret with many people or else she will lose face as someone who can't keep secrets. Asking girls of her faction about any knowledge would lead to suspicion, but if Ichinose can . ..

"I think I will try asking Kushida-san's friends alone when we meet in the evening." Ichinose caught on to the strategy.

"You mean in the meetings involving only you and group members of each group?"

"Yes, that one. When they are alone with me then there is a good chance they will open up. Mii-chan is not a suspect so we can just tell her to not share this info."

"So you plan to narrow down the list to Kushida and the people she tells about Shinohara?"

"Yes, at first I will inquire lightly. Once I learn of people who know about it I will ask them to refrain from sharing this info any further."

"That is a feasible plan at the moment, let's continue with this plan. If there is nothing left to discuss then I will take my leave now."

"Sure, see you around Horikita-san."

I see that we are avoiding direct contact with Kushida. It is as if these two have assumed her as the traitor. While being so presumptuous can lead to mistakes, assuming Kushida as the turncoat is something out of the ordinary. Is there something that these two know about her that I don't? These three girls are not the type to target each other out of jealousy, or are they?

My lack of understanding of what drives these two is becoming more and more of a problem, I will observe from the sidelines for now. While keeping an eye for any mistakes, I am positive that at the end of the day they will narrow down the list of suspects successfully this time. At last I can take things easy in this test.

Horikita left the scene, commanding Ichinose with more work and yet not a hint of gratitude in her words. Apparently she does understand this is not a work for her, the only stage she can perform in this test is the Dragon group.

My words of gratitude won't mean anything to Ichinose, I wonder what motivates her to go this far. Is it just the fear of loss, or is there something more? These questions remain unanswered, but I will observe her keenly during this test to unravel some useful information.

We both stood there for a moment of silence, none of us left the scene. She looked up at the stars, and her expression loosened up a little, this was a moment of rest she had earned.

Beep

Our cell phones beeped at once, this sound was a notification from school.

"The test has now ended for the Monkey group. Those in the Monkey group are no longer required to participate any further. Please do not disturb the other students."

"Huh?"

Ichinose fiddled around her phone a little more and faced me. One after another notification kept coming from classmates but seems like she was doing something else. In a few seconds she faced me again.

On looking at my phone I discovered a message by Horikita.

I am sorry. Things seem really confusing right now. I'm going to give you a call.

Wait a little, let me get the idea of what is going on and I will contact you.

"That was the group with Kouenji in it." Ichinose stated.

"I see, I think he answered beforehand so he can get out of this test already."

"I don't know but I feel like he answered on a whim to get out of this test, like the last time he retired from the island exam."

"That can be the case, but he is an exceptionally talented individual; so there might be a chance he would have answered correctly as well."

"I hope it is that way. I will take my leave now Ayanokouji-kun, Good night."

"Goodnight, Ichinose."

With that the brief moment of relaxation ended for Ichinose, the test has grown more complicated after this announcement. It was already midnight but I decided to grab a drink since I was feeling thirsty.

I descended to the first level, there were a few vending machines on that floor. But to my surprise I came across an unusual assembly, Chabashira Sensei, Hoshinomiya sensei and Mashima Sensei were drinking together.

The teachers were relaxing on the sofa. The area wasn't technically off

limits to students, but since things like izakaya and bars weren't open to us, no one came around.

I'd taken this route just for a change of scene, but had stumbled onto an opportunity. I hid myself and drew nearer.

Chapter- 8

Chapter- 8

(A/N: This chapter is also continuation of POV of Ayanokouji from the last chapter.)

To find the teacher's together at a place like this should not be unnatural, but if I get caught then it can prove fatal once they decide to drive this matter far.

"You know, it's been a long time since the three of us all got together."

"It is what it is. Fate. After bouncing around from one thing to the next, we all chose the teacher's life."

"Enough. There's no point talking about that."

"Ah, that reminds me. You were on a date the other day, weren't you?

You've got a new girlfriend, huh? Mashima-kun, you're quite the playboy. And here I'd thought you were the quiet, unsociable type."

"Chie, what happened to the man you were with?"

"Ah ha ha! We broke up two weeks ago. I'm the type of girl who

breaks it off once the relationship starts getting serious. It's just like, see ya later!" Hoshinomiya-sensei said.

"That's what you'd usually hear from the guy."

"Ah, but I'd never do that to you, Mashima-kun. You're my best friend,

after all. I'd hate to ruin our friendship."

"Relax. I'm not worried about that."

"What a shocker."

Hoshinomiya-sensei poured whiskey into an empty glass. She downed

it in one gulp. Must've been a drinker. On the other hand, Chabashira-sensei sipped her drink like a cocktail.

"What are you planning, Sae?"

Chabashira made eye contact in a questioning manner.

"It's customary to place all of the class representatives into the Dragon

group, isn't it?"

"Yes, what about it?"
"You put Hirata Yousuke and Kushida Kikyo in a different group than the Dragon group."
"True both of them have splendid grades as well as a fairly good evaluation in teamwork, but as I am the one who accompanied my class on the island for seven days I know that both of them have major drawbacks in their leadership. I genuinely think that they needed to learn a lesson so I removed them from Dragon group."

Chabashira answered without flinching even once, as if she already predicted this event. Mashima sensei nodded in agreement.

"But the incongruencies do not end there, you put Ayanokouji Kiyotaka and Chiaki Matsushita on the Dragon group." Hoshinomiya sensei pointed out the question I am also interested in.
"On the island one of them was elected as the leader by the class, I deem this challenge to be correct to unravel the hidden potential these two might have," Chabashira-sensei answered it bluntly.

"Still there are no visible signs like academics and cooperativeness." But Hoshinomiya-sensei was not ready to leave it at that.

"If you follow that logic why do you think Sakagami-sensei would put Ryuuen Kakeru into the Dragon group? The true place in society is not decided with just grades and numbers, there is more to a student than those which others might not see." As if expecting that, Chabashira-sensei gave a perfect response to it.
Mashima sensei nodded again in agreement as if convinced of something. However, he then strictly addressed Hoshinomiya-sensei.

"There's no rule against this, but I want to be clear. Stop spying on your colleagues' classes."
Hoshinomiya-sensei made an apologetic yet not at all serious expression, she did pull the gun while they were under the effect of alcohol. But Chabashira sensei also handled it perfectly.

Aside from all this, I just realized that I am again struck under a heavy scrutiny due to her desire to reach Class A. I turned back to leave the place before anyone could find me. Suddenly I heard footsteps, hiding beside the vending machine I waited.

It was Sakagami sensei heading to join the other teachers, once he was gone I left the place and returned towards my room. It was already past midnight so most of them were asleep and I was slightly glad to find Kouenji asleep as well. What bothered me was that Hirata was still awake.

"You are rather late, Ayanokouji-kun."

"Yeah, a bit. Can you explain to me the situation about the Monkey group?" I asked him. Yukimura who was supposedly asleep propped himself up.

"This guy here; sleeping like a log. He just answered for the whole Monkey group on a whim," Yukimura said as he pointed towards Kouenji, he was trembling as if he was on edge.

"I see." So it was Kouenji who pulled the traitor on the Monkey group. Knowing him I would guess he did it to save himself time and effort for the incoming days. The whole exam has moved just by a single stroke of Kouenji.

First day has ended with things moving faster than expected, even if I give it my all in this test it is still hard to operate outside my group. I need to have more sets of eyes and ears on my side to tackle the test as a whole, but I don't have any obligation to put in the work so I will sit back.

After some discussion we all slept since it was already past midnight. The second day, Dragon group gathered again as per the scheduled time. We all played the same game of King, Minister, Thief and Police. This time Class B had two students participating, Matsushita represented our class while Shiina Hiyori from Class C showed up.

The role of King went to Shiina Hiyori, even by coincidence it is extremely lucky for Class C to get the role of King twice in a row. That role solves all your problems for that round, you can just sit back and look at the Police and Thief struggle, as they pull their hairs out trying to crack the round for mere five hundred points while you are cozy with a thousand points guaranteed.

The round concluded and Class B guessed Matsushita correctly as the Thief, the reason being simple. One of the Class B students was the Police and the other was the Minister, so the Minister just needed to hint the Police a little that the other individual was the Thief; once that was done trust between the classmates would carry them to victory. Matsushita was pretty helpless in a situation like this, but she didn't seem to mind it.

The next round was my turn, the papers were distributed and everyone received their roles. Unfortunately, I was the Police.

Class B representative was the King and now I needed to identify the Thief among the individuals Kaneda Satoru and Sonoda Masashi. While Kaneda peered into my eyes through his glasses, it was pretty obvious that Sonoda was the Thief since he was already having a hard time keeping it together.

At a moment like this it is hard to decide the correct choice that would avoid suspicion from Class C, if I guess it correctly at once then it might raise suspicion. But even if I guess wrong on purpose it can backfire. All eyes were set on me and the time was passing more quickly than expected.

Everyone was convinced of my indecisiveness as a minute had passed and still I was just staring at both individuals without any signs of answering, my guess is that Sonoda was put into this group based on his academics but he has poor acting skills. Not answering in an easy situation like this might make it obvious I was not trying to answer, unlike Sonoda I didn't have the test scores to back up my reasoning to be in this group, I must show some other abilities to keep people convinced. And that ability would be. . ..

"Horikita, can you help me with this?"

I asked with a small hint of helplessness leaking out of my voice.

"The rules don't specify anything about me helping you, but I will refrain from that since this is your battle. Just go with what seems fit to you, it's not like this decision will decide class points or private points in future."
Horikita following my plan gave me a small dose of advice highlighting her superiority, but now that she has given me a push I can demolish the fake indecisiveness I had built. In the last few seconds I answered Sonoda as the Thief and as expected it was him.

I monitored the reaction of other students but none of them seemed to suspect me at this point.

The first meeting of the second day ended without any major occurrence, the strategy of Class A still stood undefeated.

I strolled out of the room, and followed my normal routine of avoiding my room and especially Kouenji. Time flew by and soon it was eight, the next meeting of Dragon group will begin now.

The meeting started but out of the ordinary, first to speak this time was Ryuuen.

"It's time we got down to business," he said, giving off a smile that would make most people uncomfortable.

No one said anything but just stared at him with a questioning look.

"I announce here and now that our class does not have the VIP of Dragon group. We are ready to verify it by offering our cellphones, but only if you all promise to do the same."

What Ryuuen said surprised everyone present in the room, but he would face some resistance even if it is the best move right now for a class that doesn't have the VIP.

"Do you really think that would help? The VIP would never agree to this," said the girl named Sayo Ando from Class B.

Katsuragi calmly analyzed the situation without any signs of tension. His class did not participate in discussion at all, thus he had nothing to be afraid of. Regardless if the VIP was from their class or not, he would not speak a word to support or oppose the conclusion we reach.

"If you are the VIP you are free to shut up and stay in the corner, but for those who are not; it is time we narrowed down the list or else the VIP will get away by the end of the test." Ryuuen shot down the one opposing him.

Just as he said, the class who does not have VIP gains nothing from keeping it concealed in this situation. However if you are the VIP this will be nothing less than a nightmare for you. Kanzaki who was still wary of Ryuuen calculated the outcomes carefully.

"I am in support of this strategy, Class B will also offer their cellphones for verification," declared Kanzaki.

The VIP must be scared out of their mind at a moment like this. Once Class B agreed all eyes were on our class now.

"We agree to do the same." Horikita took the decision for us, she looked at Ichinose once who nodded slightly.

Lastly everyone looked at Class A, who didn't give any signs of participating in this either. Understanding the fact that trying to convince Class A to follow this plan is still fruitless, Ryuuen handed out his phone to Kanzaki and other members of his class did the same.

Once Kanzaki was done he handed all the phones to us, and we started verifying them one by one.

"Since you all are like the leading figures of your respective classes, you won't mind if I take your phone numbers right?" Ichinose asked.

"I will take the liberty to do the same," Ryuuen answered.

"Sure."

Horikita seemed troubled by that thought; generally she would ask me to share contact info in her stead, but when you give your cell phone for verification you are already giving out that detail. Horikita should have taken that into account earlier, Ichinose on the other hand is being kind to even ask permission.

Shortly after Class C was done, Class B gave out their cellphones. Once we were done checking them, it was concluded that neither Class C or Class B had the VIP. Now the situation has changed, only Class D has the knowledge that the VIP is from Class A since we already know that our class does not have a VIP.

At a time like this, if we deny the access of our phones to Class C and B then we can have an upper hand over them as the suspicion on us will spike since we aren't complying but at the same time we don't have a VIP so the traitor will be misled. It would be an ideal situation for us, but at the end of the day if we withdraw from our promise now then we would develop an image even worse as compared to Ryuuen. Thus, we all complied and gave out our phones as well.

Once both classes were done verifying Ryuuen spoke up.

"So, none of us have the VIP, very interesting." Ryuuen said, looking at the Class A students sitting in the corner of the room.

But Katsuragi was just as surprised as all of them, looking at the students of his class; one after another as if having a VIP in his class was news to him. He opened his mouth to say something to Ryuuen but voice didn't come out of it since he had promised not to take part in the discussion. He sat back analyzing the development which was probably unexpected for him, regardless of his unbreakable plan.

My guess would be that someone among his teammates had lied about being the VIP to him and now it is biting him back, but thinking deeper into it and taking the cautious personality Katsuragi has into the account, it is hard to believe he won't check the Emails of his teammates before diving into this test. Whatever the case was, things were clear to the Dragon group. The VIP is in Class A, the next step is to make the Class A students talk so that they leak hints directing towards the VIP.

"Katsuragi, I propose we go with the plan Kanzaki suggested at the beginning of the test," Ichinose advised.

At the start of the test Kanzaki had proposed the idea of an anonymous account for VIP to reveal their name in the last hour of the test so that we all can aim for the Outcome 1. This would be an ideal situation only if Katsuragi would agree to it.

But as expected only silence answered back to Ichinose as none of the Class A students made eye contact with her, acting as if they didn't hear what she said.

The meeting ended soon enough leaving all the leaders of the classes frustrated, we all dispersed to plan the strategy further from this point as things have developed greatly. One of the three Class A students is the VIP, we just need to guess them right.

In the hallway Ichinose approached me.

"Ayanokouji-kun, do you have any news?"

"No. What about you?"

"I have talked to the VIPs of our class and made a list of people who know about them. If what we fear happens then we will be able to zero upon the person soon," she said in a cheerful tone yet keeping a low voice.

"You are really working hard for this. Are you going to hold a meeting with all groups today as well?"

"Yes, most of them are trying their best to hide their VIPs and also to identify the VIPs. Our class is giving it our all in this test."
"I am glad to hear that."

"I am going to grab a drink from the café, would you like to join me?" She asked.

Generally that place would be crowded, but the meeting for most groups has ended just now so I think we can avoid the crowd now.

"Sure."

We walked into the café which was far superior to the Pallet café we visit normally, the drinks were also expensive beyond reasoning but we had them for free since school was funding this trip.

Once I was comfortable on my seat with my drink, I began to wonder how would a coffee taste vary if it was diluted with water gradually. The dilution of coffee with milk is an easy to predict variation of taste, but how would the taste when combined with water. As I was lost in thoughts, Ichinose snapped me out of it.

"Who do you think is the VIP of Dragon group, Ayanokouji-kun?"

"Huh?" I made a sound unconsciously as the question was sudden.

"I mean, do you have any rough idea of who might the VIP be in Dragon group? I am sorry to jump this on you suddenly."

"It's okay, we just verified that the VIP is not from Class C or B. Looking at Katsuragi he didn't seem like the VIP, as if he was he would only attract more attention. My guess is someone out of the two Class A students left." I answered her question, losing my train of thought that was headed towards water coffee.

"I think the same, we will soon need to make a judgement and take a risk. Or else other classes will get ahead of us."

"You have a point, but we should also avoid hasty judgements."

"True. The time for my meeting is nearing, I am sorry to leave in such a short time."

"It's okay, that work holds more priority than our discussion at the moment."

"Thanks for understanding, Ayanokouji-kun. Cya."

With that she left the café, I just realized that while talking I already finished my coffee. I guess the idea of mixing water with coffee can wait for a little while.

After some hours I returned to the pool, which was drowned in activity during day time. Now it is enveloped in silence and some occasional sounds of engine changing directions.

I was here for a very clear purpose, I didn't plan to let my homeroom teacher remain as the arbitress of my school life. So it was time I took some measures to stop her in the future. I took out my phone to make a call, since phones already had the contact details of teachers contacting Chabashira sensei was not hard. Once I was done talking I waited near the pool in the chilly winds that blew occasionally.

Chapter- 9

Chapter- 9

(A/N: Ayanokouji's POV continues)
The midnight silence felt threatening and peaceful at the same time, unlike cities it was quieter here. There was no sound of clock ticking, the ship engine had geared down and thus it grew quiet as well. The stillness was broken by the sound of footsteps, Chabashira-sensei approached me walking in an elegant manner.

"I am sorry to keep you waiting, Ayanokouji."

"It's okay. I'm sorry to call you so late."

"An instructor is obligated to consult with a student. It's nothing out of the ordinary. Besides, for better or for worse this is the first time you have contacted me."
"There's something I wanted to ask you sensei."
"Go ahead."

"You once stated that we can buy anything using our points, but there are some exceptions to that rule. Right?"

"Yes. We can't honor requests such as buying the life of anyone within the school premises."

"Thinking along those lines, what is the largest amount of points someone spent in the past and on what?" I asked.

"I can speak from my own experience, it was when someone invested points to bend the school rules. Of course you are kept within certain limitations in that aspect as well."
"Can you give me some examples that have occurred in the past?"
"Are you dissatisfied with my answer?"
"Nah, I don't really mind. I have a good idea of how the school system works."

"You could have just emailed me that question. I don't understand why you wanted me to meet you in person."

"I wanted to discuss something else as well. About the results of island exams."

The word flipped a switch in her and her lips curled to form a slight smile, but she controlled it quickly and assumed her usual demeanour.

"The results were splendid, they surpassed my expectation." her voice had a hint of graciousness in it.

"If that is what you think, then why did you put me in the Dragon group of this test?"

Sensing the danger approaching her, her face switched into battle mode.

"The guidelines for grouping the students is not something you could start understanding. You have been placed in the correct group according to those specifications."
Chabashira sensei took advantage of the lack of information I had about the guidelines. . . or so she thought. I stayed silent for a moment and as expected a sense of victory had seeped into her, but it was too early for that.

"According to those instructions, it's customary to place all of the class representatives into the group, isn't it?"
For a moment she was dumbfounded on hearing the same question which was pitched on her last night, she opened her mouth to say something but closed it again as if not sure what to say.

"Why would you think that?"

Her tone lowered as if she understood there was no way to escape this situation without damage. While the teachers were forbidden to reveal answers directly, the greater threat that troubled her was me. She had put me in a group without giving me any prior information about it, she had tried to trick me and now she was caught.

In this tough situation she would be willing to get out of this by any means necessary, but I am ready to offer her a truce in this situation.

"I overheard the conversation between the teachers last night."

I revealed a sensitive piece of information that would work against me. Chabashira sensei grabbed the opportunity and took the lead of conversation.

"You do know that I could drive this situation to your expulsion right?" She said in a dominant tone.

" 'You work to reach class A and I will protect you unilaterally.' those are the words of someone I know."

The actual question here isn't if she could drive this matter to expulsion or not. The point is if she would?
"I promised you protection against the request to expel you, not for a rule breach of eavesdropping the conversation of teachers." She countered.

"Wasn't the result of the island test more than you asked for ,even more than you expected, I am the only hope you have to reach Class A. Would you not overlook this matter in exchange for those results?"

I must make sure that she is not comfortable using me for her goals, she can try to expel me with this matter but that would be a grave loss on her part. Deducing from what I heard last night and the way she threatened me to work on island exam, I reached the conclusion that she is ready to risk a lot to reach to Class A.

She stood there, her eyes grown misty, calculating the risk and reward of this situation. In the stillness of eternal night, she stood under the moonlight like a maiden in distress. She looked around to make sure no one was spying on us, but that concern was needless since in this peaceful environment hiding and spying was not a feasible task; you would be discovered easily even by amateurs.

"We both are deep into this gamble, backing off might not be an option now." she said after a long period of silence.

She had no choice but to establish a partnership on equal terms here, this also proved her lack of understanding about me. Had she known I was also desperate to avoid expulsion, things would have gone south.

"I will overlook this matter, I will do the same in future. But once a third party is involved, be it a student or teacher I can't guarantee anything." She stated her conditions.

"I understand, I will soon contact you for another favour in near future."

I decided to mark the end of this conversation. And walked away from the scene. Looking over my shoulder, I saw Chabashira sensei still standing there.

Once I was out of her eyesight I took out my phone and stopped the recording. This much was enough of a proof to use against her in future if the situation demands such, for now my concern was saving it in my device.

If the school examines all the data stored in cell phones, then Chabashira sensei might already be in a little dangerous situation. But considering the reputation the school holds I am sure they won't breach the privacy of students at such deep levels such as playing every recorded audio by them.

Saving the recorded file with the name of 'Midnight Silence' I kept the cell phone in my pocket and returned to my room.

Everyone was asleep, I laid down in my bed as well but with all this going on I wasn't falling asleep that fast. It was around three in morning that I was getting slightly sleepy, but amidst the drowsiness a slight sound reached my ears. Sleep faded as I heard some footsteps, I opened my eyes slightly to find Hirata missing from his bed; exiting from the door. This is the first night he has left the bed, but it is natural to leave for the washroom at a time like this.

Things seemed natural until I saw a shadow looming near the door, Hirata had just left a second ago but he was back already peeping from the door making sure all of us were asleep. This action was enough to raise my suspicion, I have not been paying much attention to him but apparently something had been going behind the scenes that I have missed.

Once he left again I propped myself up and made my way out of the room, slowly following, maintaining a suitable distance between us making sure that he doesn't notice me. The problem arrived when he started moving into a long corridor which eventually split into two directions.

I must wait at the end of the corridor until Hirata crosses it completely, if I rush things and enter the corridor while he is in it then it would risk the danger of instant loss once he turns back. In a situation like that I would be helpless as there won't be enough time for me to run back into hiding. Thus I waited until he reached the other end, once that happened I started making my way slowly towards the other end.

(A/N: Now my imagery might be lacking or the description might not have given a good idea of the situation in first attempt so I would use a dummy picture to retry in case it failed and describe the situation.)

(Now, Ayanokouji is the red dot hiding behind the wall as Hirata makes his way, the path Hirata followed is highlighted by sky blue. As you can see, if someone is tailing anyone in a long hallway like this, then once the person turns back the one who is tailing would be in a checkmate as they can't run back into hiding in the given time so they must hide and wait to avoid getting discovered.)

While I was halfway through, I sensed someone else, Hirata had turned left but there was a sound of footsteps coming from the right. I crouched down and waited for the third party to show up, as the footsteps grew closer I saw Matsushita tiptoeing towards the direction Hirata was in. This development was rather unexpected, her presence on the third deck which accommodated the boys was hard to understand.

Once she crossed the path I stood up again and started following Matsushita who was apparently following Hirata.

(Now once Hirata has passed his path is highlighted by white, Ayano who was once a dot is now represented as an arrow since he has crossed half of the corridor. He stops there once he spots Matsushita, whose path is highlighted by green. She does not notice him as she is immersed in tailing Hirata already. This marks the end of these sudden author explanations, hopefully they served their purpose.)

Matsushita was heading towards the main hallway of the third floor, which was not in the direction of the men's washroom. That means Hirata had been out of his room for a different purpose after all.

She hid behind the wall and peeped into the hallway where apparently Hirata had stopped. I watched Matsushita from a distance, but if things remained like this then I wouldn't be able to find the reason Hirata was out in the first place. Revealing myself to her could backfire if she realizes I was also tailing Hirata but I had another plan to avoid that.

I closed the distance between me and Matsushita, rubbing my eyes and deliberately making small noises with my footstep that she could hear. On sensing someone approaching her she turned back frantically to see who it was. As soon as she saw me she started planning, I walked slowly towards her in a sleepy manner.

"Hey, Ayanokouji-kun. What ya doing here at this hour?" She asked in a low voice.

"I was heading to the washroom." I did not have a bedhead, so convincing her that I lost my way because I was sleepy might not be easy.

"Washroom is that way I think."

She did not dig into details and just pointed towards the direction, hoping I would leave once I found my way.

"Oh, thank you. By the way what are you doing here?" I asked in a nonchalantly, showing no signs of leaving any soon.

"I was here to use the washroom as well, now that I am done I am heading back to my room." She justified herself.

"But the girl's deck has a washroom as well, why would you come down here to use it? And why are we talking in a hushed tone?" I asked her.

Figuring out that she was stuck, she had two choices' either she lies to me more cleverly to get out of this or truthfully tells me the situation. I looked into her eyes and at one point they relaxed.

"Okay listen, keep this a secret and don't tell a soul about this."

"Sure."
Apparently she had judged me to be a harmless nobody and was ready to speak the truth. She took another peek into the hallway and with an assured expression returned to me.

"Look, things have happened and Hirata is talking to Karuizawa right now in the hallway next to us. For now let's watch them, I will explain to you later why I am here."

I tried to analyze the information she just threw at me and took a brief moment to nod slightly to state my agreement. Apparently the conversation going on was not something she was willing to miss, so she wrapped things up quickly.

Both of us glanced at the scene from behind the wall, our bodies were close so it felt a little uncomfortable to me. But I focused on Hirata and Karuizawa who were standing in the center of the main hallway. It was a tactically correct position such that there was not much room to eavesdrop on them, although it was easy for people to see them there it was also easy for them to see the people.

Neither me or Matsushita could make a word of what they said. I tried to read the lips of Karuizawa but it was fruitless given the frantic pace at which she was talking. Considering her extremely worried expression and some words I made out from reading her lips, my guess would be that she is asking Hirata for help. And the way Hirata occasionally shook his head, probably he wasn't ready to honor her request whatever it was.

On the surface it looked like a typical quarrel between couples, but I sensed something more serious deep down in all this. They might look like a perfect couple from outside but apparently there was something more going on.

"You liar! You said you would protect me!"

It was confirmed when a scream from Karuizawa was carried down all the way to us. Hirata who was still unfazed from this, talked back calmly thus his reply was not audible.

Another scream followed the last one after a few minutes of bickering.

"I don't want to!"

Again

"Whatever! If you are not going to listen to me then I don't need you!"

This time Karuizawa threw a juice can past Hirata towards us, instinctively both me and Matsushita pulled ourselves back. The sound echoed down the hallway, amidst all these surprising events, an even more surprising statement was passed by Karuizawa.

"Our relationship is over! It's over!" she shouted.

After that Karuizawa left the scene and Hirata stood there lost in thought.

"Let's head back already or we might get caught." Matsushita whispered.

"You are right, but what just happened here?"

"I think I get half of that. I will explain to you later in the morning."

That would be a chance for me to know what exactly she was doing here as well.

"Sure."

"Now let's get out of here before Hirata is here."
I nodded in agreement and we departed our ways where the corridor split in two. I got back to my room fast and slipped into my bed.

A few minutes later Hirata was back, assured that none of us were awake he sat on his bed. Holding his head in his hands, it was apparent he was under pressure. Amidst this test he also needed to deal with his relationship which was apparently falling apart.

Similar situation to this had occurred on the island where he was overwhelmed, at that time Ichinose had helped him to get out of it by taking charge. My guess would be that he would contact her soon to ask help from her as well as Horikita.

From the beginning of the year Ichinose had acted as a bridge between Horikita and Hirata so it is natural he would head to her to ask for help if it is serious.

At last I started feeling sleepy by five in morning and soon needed to wake up. Today was the third day, there were no meetings scheduled for groups today as tomorrow would be the day this exam concludes. Today is the time to plan the next steps to zero in on the VIPs.

On waking up all my roommates were missing, I groomed myself and walked outside as well. The atmosphere was tense between the students, girls were roaming on our floor. It seemed like a daily holiday from outside but this was the time to scheme things in your favour.

As I made my way to the hallway I sensed someone approaching me, I turned behind to discover Matsushita.

"Found you. C'mon let's go to the cafeteria and talk." She asserted

"Uh, I would prefer a less crowded place." I tried to show my discomfort, but . . .

"Oho, you are making bold moves I see." She said in a teasing tone.

'No, I just dislike crowded places.' was the message I was trying to convey, but seems like we two think differently on matters like these.

"I just don't prefer crowded places much." I replied.

"It's okay, let's head to the lower floors I guess. That graveyard might be what you enjoy." She made another pun out of my preference, keeping up with her is going to be tough.

"Sure."

We both walked a floor down where our meeting rooms are located, students only come to this floor to participate in their respective meetings. Usually this floor does not see activity anywhere near to the café.

"So, why were you down on our floor this morning?"

I went straight to the point. Last time when this question popped up I was positive she would have told me the real reason if time permitted, the way her eyes relaxed that time it was enough to conclude she saw me as a harmless creature who won't bring any damage to her even if he knows the truth.

After a brief moment of silence she took a deep breath and started speaking.

"You see, I woke up to use the washroom. But on my way back I saw Karuizawa heading downstairs to the third deck. I decided to follow her, but soon she entered the main hallway where following her was not an option. While she waited there for a few minutes I decided to head to the other side of the hallway from a different route, that is where I found Hirata heading towards the same place."
"So you decided to tail him and eventually both of them met?"
"Exactly and after that you showed up to mess things up." She said in a playful tone.

"I am sorry for that, I had lost my way."
"It's okay, I don't mind. Just keep it a secret between us. If the girls come to know Hirata's relationship has weakened then all of them will prey on this opportunity."

"You have a point there."

"So-"

Beep
Matsushita was cut short before she could convey her message. It was a message from school, according to it the test had ended for the cow group.

"Let's get back to see what is going on." She dropped the topic and hurried back to her friends.

Another notification reached me, it was a message by Ichinose.

Hirata has asked me and Horikita-san to meet. Would you like to join us?

Sure, but he hasn't contacted me. Would it be okay to show up uninvited?

I will ask him

After a few seconds Ichinose replied back. Hirata had approved my participation in the conversation. Apparently he forgot to contact me or so I would like to think.

Chapter- 10

Chapter- 10 (Ryuuen's POV)

(A/N: This is Ryuuen's POV, timeline is when the second meeting of the second day had ended.)

After revealing all our identities, it was easy to corner Class A in the quest of VIP. I have already conquered the battleground of Dragon group, by the end of fourth day we will emerge victorious out of this.

But as of now, there is a bigger picture to this exam that I must take care of. I decided to target Class A and I didn't plan on changing that goal just because some Class D monkeys have a death wish.

However, Kushida won't trade the name of VIPs just yet if I don't focus on this tribe of baboons. So I will play along with them a little. I took out my phone and texted.

Send me whatever you found till now or exam will end by the time you gather names of all VIPs.

She had been trying to find all VIPs of Class D, seemingly she can't find one out of the three.

In a few seconds I received a message from an anonymous account.

Satsuki Shinohara and Kushida Kikyou.

Looking at the text I let out a small chuckle. An interesting way to operate, she even mentioned her own name to avoid suspicion. I entered my room, Kaneda and Albert were waiting for me. They stood up once they registered my presence.

"Kaneda, give me the list of all groups and their respective members from all classes."

"Uh. . It will take a few minutes to prepare the list, Ryuuen-san." Swallowing the instantaneous confusion, he obeyed my command.

Soon a long list of groups and participants was on my table. After a few minutes of brainstorming I figured out the pattern one which this test operated.

This pattern would be nearly impossible to guess with just three VIPs of my class, but now that I have five different names it couldn't be any easier. I circled the name of the third VIP of Class D.

Karuizawa Kei.

Apparently she is another baboon that leads the apes of Class D. My immersion declined in the test after decoding the answer and I noticed Albert and Kaneda still standing. Waiting quietly for me to get done with my work, I can never get enough of this feeling of superiority.

With the pattern decoded I figured out the names of the rest of the VIPs from Class A. The war had already been won now. As much as I would like to end this test right now, I will savor this time as I walk around the worthless chimps trying their best and failing in all this.

I took a deep breath, ready to burst out laughing in the elation of my victory.

Knock Knock

Just before I was about to unleash it, the sound of knocking fouled my mood.

Who. . . dares to interrupt me at a time like this.

Albert went ahead and unlocked the door, Ibuki walked in with her foul expression completely ruining a little of what beauty she had. The way she is always exasperated at one thing or another it sometimes appears like a unique illness to me. Anyways that is not my concern.

"Ryuuen, there is trouble stirring up in my group."
Usually any other student of my class would have never dared to speak without my permission, but this girl has some other ideas.

"What is it?"

"That Manabe is bullying some Class D girl in the rabbit group."
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because tonight they started beating her up, you remember what happened last time when we tried to bully Class D, right?"
A very roundabout way to piss me off, she is successful if that was her motive. I don't have anything else to do anyways until the test ends, playing with Class D chimps is always entertaining.

"What is the girl's name?"
"Karuizawa Kei, she is the leader of the girls of Class D."

A smile crept over my face as the fact struck to me she was the VIP of Rabbit group. It will be easy to blackmail her using that information.

But before that I should get deep into this situation and know more about my prey.

"Call Manabe." Shortly after I uttered those words, Manabe was standing in front of me reciting the situation like a bird. Seemingly she is afraid that she might be in danger for bullying other class students without my permission.

The situation was a classic bullying event until . .

"What? Repeat that again." I intervened with Manabe and she fell silent.

"S-So Karuizawa was arguing back like a bitch. Yamashita lost it and struck her forcefully bringing her to knees, just after that she dropped the fight completely and started panting while holding her head." Manabe repeated herself.

Manabe stopped again, but I directed her to go on.

"After that we pulled her hair and gave her a thorough verbal beatdown but she just kept sobbing and kept begging for us to stop."

Kukuku, that U-turn was pretty unbecoming for a class leader. But from my past experience I have a good idea that only broken chimps do that. According to what Manabe said there was no significant change in situation that would give Manabe an upper hand over Karuizawa.

Yet her resistance dropped to zero at once when Yamashita gave her the taste of violence, this sheer change implies that she has a strong fear of bullying. May it be from past experience or from watching someone else getting bullied, regardless of its origin her weakness is now highlighted which I shall prey on.

"Later Ibuki and some Class D guys showed up but we made it out of it pretty easy since the guys who found us were spineless nerds." Manabe completed her story.

"You can go back now, continue what you are doing freely but within limits." A current of relief ran through Manabe as her tense shoulders dropped.

Once Manabe was gone I took up my phone and texted the anonymous account of Kushida.

Tell me how to make this incognito account, I will play with your class a little.

I appointed a meeting with her tonight to discuss my schemes for tomorrow.

"Ryuuen what are you plotting?" Ibuki interrupted me again.

"I am just passing time, I already have the answers for the test." I don't owe her any explanation.

Ibuki didn't seem to understand the situation, but soon she caught on. Tomorrow there are no meetings scheduled for this test, we are free to attack the other classes outside the test and now my target is set.

Chapter- 11

Chapter- 11

(Ayanokouji's POV continuation from when he was invited to the meeting with Hirata, Ichinose and Horikita)

We all met on the second deck which is located below ground, Hirata was already waiting for us there. Our eyes met once but he averted them quickly, apparently he was still calculating my inclusion in all this.

"So what did you want to talk about, Hirata-kun?" Ichinose broke the silence.

After a brief moment of silence Hirata took a deep breath and spoke.

"For the past two days one of our classmates has been bullied by some students of Class C, I am at a loss on how to tackle the situation since both the parties have their actions justified."

What he said took us by surprise, could this be related to the fight he had with Karuizawa last night? Perhaps one of her friends is getting bullied.

This floor is usually low on students when exams aren't going on, so tactically it was a good place to discuss something sensitive.

"Explain the situation in detail please, or we won't be able to help."

Horikita pressed Hirata for more information. Hirata did look unsure but Horikita was also correct, we can't help him if we don't know details of the problem. Trying to go into the situation without information would be similar to walking in dark.

"Karuizawa-san and a Class C student namely Rika Morofuji had a dispute in the school premises. From what I have heard and deduced Morofuji-san is a rather meek person and Karuizawa-san is at fault here. Since Karuizawa-san hadn't apologized to her, other Class C students led by Shiho Manabe have been bullying Karuizawa-san for the past two days to make her submit to them and ultimately apologize to Morofuji-san."

Hirata recited the series of events without flinching an eyebrow. So the person who was being bullied was Karuizawa herself, to think some mere students would be able to bully a class leader such as Karuizawa is something odd.

"Then why isn't she just apologizing to them and ending this?" Horikita asked after a pause she took to analyze all this.

"I have been requesting her to do the same but she refuses to do so."
"Then there is nothing we can do in this unless they start getting violent."

"Last night they actually did get violent." Hirata revealed another part of the problem.

Ichinose was silently waiting for the situation to unfold, Horikita was trying to brush off this matter but as Hirata explained more it was getting more serious than any of us thought.

"I would've tried to handle this situation myself, but there was a sudden development which I can't handle alone. That is why I asked your help on this matter." Hirata added

"Sudden development?" I asked Hirata who had clearly forgotten I was also present here.

"Yes. Today morning she was asked to come alone to the lowest deck of the ship, additionally commanded not to tell anyone about this but she told me secretly so please don't tell anyone about this."

We all nodded in agreement, Hirata took a small pause and continued.

"Since it was messaged to her from an anonymous account, I don't know of their identity. But I think it might be related to the Class C incident."

Indeed, a place on the ship without cameras and witnesses would make a place similar to the special building of the school. It is one of the best places to get violent and yet get away with it.

"If you do think so then she can just ignore the message. She isn't obliged to do whatever she is texted." Ichinose said what I was thinking.

There was no reason to follow the orders of an anonymous person unless they had the upper hand in a situation that would force Karuizawa into it.

"She is the third VIP of our class, the one who mailed her somehow knows this information. If she does not come down to the switch room then they are threatening to leak this info to other unallied classes."

Hirata had revealed yet another information to us, this meeting had been more informative than I had assumed. Ichinose had only found names of two VIPs of our class, but now we have all three of them.

So Karuizawa was the third VIP, since she had been extremely secretive about this it would be easy to smoke out who is doing all this.

"Who are the people she had told about her identity as VIP?" Horikita asked, still unfazed by this huge input of info at once.

"She has only told me about this and I haven't shared this to anyone."

Once again everyone felt silent, if what Hirata says is true then there is a faint possibility of him being the traitor.

However, that defeats the purpose of him asking for help from us.

"Hirata, you are not lying to us are you?" Horikita began the interrogation.

"Of course not, I am sure that Karuizawa-san had not revealed it to anyone. And you can be sure I haven't told that to anyone either." Hirata reassured once more.
"Horikita-san, if we doubt each other at this point then the only hope for our class will die."

What Ichinose stated does have a point, if we start doubting every info we get then it might become impossible to advance further. Even so, for now I will not rule out the odds of it.

"Perhaps someone from her group had deduced her identity and is trying to use that info to their advantage?" Ichinose added the prospect.

There is a chance of someone in the rabbit group mailing that to every other member, the one who follows their order would be the VIP. Still that would be a very risky strategy as someone who isn't VIP can comply with the anonymous order and mislead them to the wrong conclusion.

"Indeed that is a possibility." Horikita replied.

This can also be by Ryuuen, had he figured out Karuizawa is the VIP he can easily set a situation where Manabe and her friends could bully Karuizawa. Assuming that Karuizawa would contact someone for help beforehand there is a chance that the leaders of Class D will take action and thus he could find who was actually the one behind our victory on the island.

Despite how fitting it sounds there is no clear way on how he would figure out Karuizawa as VIP unless the traitor had informed him with VIP names once more.

Thinking along those lines there is a strategy I can follow. When it comes to my inclusion, if Hirata actually turns out to be the traitor I can just walk in there as a pawn and if not then I can lead the scene against Ryuuen.

In the worst case scenario if Hirata and Ryuuen show up to be working together I can still make it look like Horikita and Ichinose were leading me.

"Whatever the case is, we can just hide there beforehand and become witnesses for the event. That way they would avoid doing that in future." Horikita suggested.

That is easier said than done, there would be more traps set there than we think.

"That might become more complicated but we can adapt accordingly." Ichinose added.

Once the decision was made all eyes were on Hirata to agree with us. Hirata nodded right away since we are his only hope anyways.

That being decided we all moved towards the switch room an hour before Karuizawa was asked to visit us.

"So what shall I say to Karuizawa? Should I tell her about this?" Hirata asked

"I think it is better if you don't tell her, or else the oppressor might get suspicious and dial down everything." Horikita shot him down right away.

"Oh ok then."
With a heavy heart Hirata denied Karuizawa plea to help, he didn't look that much satisfied with the plan but apparently he understands that he can't solve this all ideally either.

There wasn't a single person in the switch room, the phone network was failing and no signs of cameras or wires that would lead to any cameras. All in all a perfect place to do things privately without word leaking out.

Looking around I saw an emergency exit opposite to the main entrance and a big panel of switches that was nearly as tall as us was situated in the corner of the room.

(In the name of imagery use an image itself. - Papakoji)

"We should all hide behind the emergency exit and spectate the events that unfold."
Why do you make it sound like some show Horikita?

"Yes we should do that." Hirata seconded her opinion.

"I think we should split and hide in two places, in case they start moving around then there is a chance that peeking from the door might not cover some places." I suggested.

"That makes sense, let's do that." Ichinose agreed.

"The two of us will hide behind the switch panel, you two hide behind the emergency exit." I said pointing towards me and Ichinose.

I will hide with Ichinose behind the panel, Horikita and Hirata will wait behind the door that leads to the emergency exit. From that position both of us can see each other and peek over the switch room easily.

"And what if the person in question choses to enter from the emergency exit?" Hirata pointed out the likelihood of things getting out of hand.

"In that case just enter the room once you hear the sound of footsteps, after that before they enter just hide with us behind the panel."

Before I could answer Ichinose did, she is turning out to be more clever than I thought.

"Hmm."

We took our respective positions and got ready for the ambush. It was still half an hour prior to the meeting time when Karuizawa entered the room.

Maybe she'd arrived a little early to calm herself down. After she realized that she couldn't use her phone, she put it back in her pocket and leaned against the wall, apparently bored. She closed her eyes and opened her mouth slightly, muttering something to herself.

Once four o'clock rolled around, the door opened. I heard the dull sound of it. Three girls from Class C stepped through—Manabe and her friends.

Hirata and Horikita both stiffened up and observed the event carefully. While Ichinose also sharpened her gaze holding her breath.

The three girls were rather immersed in Karuizawa and ignorant of their surroundings.

There was one girl who had somewhat harmless expression. She seemed meek, rather like Sakura. She doesn't look like one to bully, perhaps she is the girl bullied by Karuizawa.

"It's all right," said the girl I assume to be Manabe. Then she saw Karuizawa. Naturally, Karuizawa noticed them, too.

"Wh-what are you doing here?!" she asked, trembling. This was my first time to see her actually shaking with fear, as if she had met her nightmare in real life.

The passageways inside the ship were narrow, so there weren't many escape routes. Running away would be difficult.

(Author's note: Guess what, it is elaboration time again.

M is main entrance

E is emergency exit

I and A are Ichinose and Ayanokouji respectively

H and S are Hirata and Suzune respectively

Green dot K is Kei and three orange dots surrounding her are Class C girls

This is the rough sketch of the switch room where this all is happening, hope it helps.)

"I just happened to see you come in here, that's all. Well, I suppose this is the perfect opportunity. Let me introduce you. This is Rika. Do you remember her, Karuizawa-san?" asked Manabe.

So you happened to see her come here. . . .that sounds like the most natural event that could occur. The way Manabe sounds confident I see that this meeting was rather predetermined.

Manabe grabbed Rika, who was hiding behind her, and pulled her forward. She and Karuizawa were now facing each other. Karuizawa averted her eyes, pretending like she didn't know her, but judging from her behavior it was obvious she remembered.

"Hey, Rika. Karuizawa-san was the one who shoved you, right?" asked Manabe.

"Yeah, she's the one," said Rika.

After hearing such a clear answer, Manabe smiled, looking happy as could be. Karuizawa, on the other hand, appeared increasingly anxious and confused. All we could do now was stay quiet and observe the miserable events that were about to unfold.

"Apologize to Rika," demanded Manabe.

"H-huh? Who's apologizing? I haven't done anything wrong," said Karuizawa.

By this time Hirata's expression got tense, naturally his girlfriend was about to get bullied so he would be stressed with anticipation of all this. But if we mess it up there is a good chance that it all might be in vain.

"Still acting tough. You're a real piece of work, aren't you? But I think I understand now, more or less," snapped Manabe.

"Understand what?" asked Karuizawa.

Right now I have two questions related to this situation:-

Firstly, if Manabe set the meeting herself or did someone else set this for her? Since whatever the case she doesn't look like she discovered Karuizawa in this room accidentally.

Second, even when Karuizawa is wrong she would never back down in an argument like this. Far from backing down she isn't even giving a decent fight to them. So what is it that exactly holds her back?

"Your behavior. You're unusually fearful. Karuizawa-san, you were bullied, weren't you?"

Eh?

"Wha—?!"

"I hit the nail on the head, didn't I? I knew it. I could feel it right from the start," Manabe continued.

I looked at Ichinose who had no clue about this, we both looked at Hirata and Horikita who were hiding behind the exit. Hirata had a grim expression as he met this situation.

"No, you're wrong!"

Karuizawa denied it, but her words were weak. I feel like Manabe is ranting nonsense as she doesn't look someone highly perspective, but something tells me that she might be right.

I looked at Hirata who was having a mentally exhausting internal conflict while trying to endure this scene. His face looked even more strained than before, there was a slight hint of disapproval that can be seen.

"If you get down on your knees and beg right now, I might forgive you.

How about it? I mean, you're good at groveling, right? Being on your knees?" Manabe mocked Karuizawa.

"N-no, I won't! I've never done that kind of thing before!" Karuizawa Shouted.

Karuizawa tried to slip past Manabe, but Manabe snatched her long hair and pulled her back, slamming her into the wall. Once that happened Karuizawa one her knees with her expression turned hopeless.

Now that I think about it . . . .

During the late 1960s, psychologists Martin Seligman and Steven F. Maier were conducting experiments that involved conditioning dogs to expect an electrical shock after hearing a tone. Seligman and Maier observed some unexpected results.

When initially placed in a shuttle box in which one side was electrified, the dogs would quickly jump over a low barrier to escape the shocks. Next, the dogs were strapped into a harness where the shocks were unavoidable.

After being conditioned to expect a shock that they could not escape, the dogs were once again placed in the shuttle box. Instead of jumping over the low barrier to escape, the dogs made no efforts to escape the box. Instead, they simply lay down, whined and whimpered. Since they had previously learned that no escape was possible, they made no effort to change their circumstances. The researchers called this behavior learned helplessness.

"Ow, ow! It hurts! Let me go!" screamed Karuizawa. Begging for mercy from the other party.

The incongruence in Karuizawa's behavior can be hypothesized using this theory, the way she turns helpless when given the correct moral climate. For a meek person to act helpless in this situation is understandable but someone as confident and arrogant to act like this, there is a good chance that she had been taught helplessness in this situation.

Once she is faced with a condition as such, she becomes the dog which has it's spirit broken. Whimpering and whining it will lie there on the mercy of another party, it will wait until it is destroyed completely.

Considering this hypothesis; what Manabe told was correct, Karuizawa had been bullied before to such an extreme extent that she has lost hope of surviving this. Even though conditions weren't identical an analogy could be established between them.

From what it seems Manabe was assured that the stage had been set for her revenge and if I look deeper into it Manabe doesn't seem like someone very observant person who could deduce the past of Karuizawa on her own.

So I would conclude that there is someone else who had set the stage for Manabe and also provided her information on this situation.

And I have a good idea who that might be.

"Agh!" Karuizawa shouted.

Karuizawa wept at having her hair pulled, and pleaded, but Manabe only laughed like she was enjoying it. Right now, they were on the lowest level of the ship, a closed environment. But they weren't alone, we were a witness of this.

Ichinose was observing all this with a pained expression, our plan is to come out of here and confront the Class C students to inflict fear into them. Something similar to what we did last time with Ishizaki.

My eyes wandered towards Hirata who had gripped the door handle of the emergency exit and was about to open it and burst in.

No Hirata now is not the time, have patience.

Horikita who was standing beside Hirata looked unsure, but I signaled her with my hand to stop Hirata.

She grabbed his sleeve of other hand and pulled him back forcefully. Hirata frowned and our eyes met. I could tell that he was at his limit, he couldn't watch her girlfriend get bullied more at this point.

Technically speaking this is a good time to burst out and catch them red handed, there was no point to wait any further than this. But, now I have a different plan for Karuizawa. She has to be thoroughly broken for me to implement it. Thus bursting out now is not an option.

Hirata who didn't have a clue about my plan didn't understand it and neither did he make an understanding expression. Karuizawa's screams were pushing his limits at this point. To make a hero sit back and watch a torture would be really agonizing.

"Whoa, Shiho. Don't you think you're hitting her a little too much? Wow, you're harsh."

Manabe continued to drive her knee into Karuizawa's stomach. Of course, Manabe wasn't used to hitting someone like that, so her movements were sluggish. It shouldn't have hurt much. But Karuizawa's pain was Manabe's greatest reward.

Seemingly in a great mood, she invited Rika to join in. Rika had been standing some distance away, watching anxiously.

"Come on Rika. You give it a try, too," urged Manabe.

"N-no. I'm okay," answered Rika.

"We're doing this for your sake, right? Come on, there's no one around," replied Manabe.

Rika wanted to refuse taking revenge, but that wasn't allowed right now. If your friend coaxed and cajoled you to join in the fun, it'd be difficult to keep refusing. Rika knew that if Manabe's anger were redirected at her, she could become the next victim.

"O-okay. I'll try."

There was the sound of a pathetically light slap. Pap.

"L-Like that?" asked Rika.

"No, no, that's no good at all. You need to put more force into it, like this."

Whap! The sound echoed through the room. Karuizawa looked like she was in pain after that hit. Rika slapped Karuizawa again and again, just as she was instructed. Her slaps gradually grew more forceful.

Once again things were getting heated. That means by now Hirata would be about to burst out anytime once Karuizawa screams.

"S-s-s-stop it!" pleaded Karuizawa.

Again Hirata grabbed the handle, I swiftly signaled Horikita to stop him but this time things got forceful.

She grabbed his arm but he jerked it out of her grip. He took a step ahead but from behind Horikita wrapped her arms around his neck putting him in a lock.

"Ha ha. This is fun! Ha ha!" Amidst the loud laughter of girls the sound of Hirata and Horikita bouting silently wasn't audible at all.

Within a few seconds of getting locked Hirata opened the lock using pure brute strength. His expression wasn't rational anymore, he wasn't going to allow this all unless he had a reason.

To see Hirata in a state like this was really a surprise for the three of us, but by now we had been surprised a lot. We must adapt to every change thrown at us on the spot.

At this point Horikita has no idea why she is stopping Hirata but she is doing it just because I had asked her to. Ichinose, who was witnessing this event, waved her phone towards Hirata.

She showed that she was recording the event, and Hirata calmed down a little. I wonder why both Horikita and Ichinose supported me but for now I will tread with the help I got.

Ichinose had been the reassuring agent for Hirata since beginning of the session, she was the one who established the contact between Hirata and Horikita, on top of that whenever Hirata failed as a leader it was Ichinose who took command in his stead. Thus, Hirata trusts her more on this matter than any of us.

"Please, forgive me!" Karuizawa pleaded. Attracting my attention back to the immediate matter.

Seeing her like that must have felt euphoric for Manabe and the others. Rika started to punch and kick rather strongly, to the point where I couldn't believe she'd ever been scared. Also, even though she left some marks on easy-to-spot places like Karuizawa's cheeks, Rika focused on hitting places you wouldn't be able to see normally, like under her uniform or beneath her hair.

Karuizawa collapsed in fear, tears streaming down her face. But the Class C students weren't done yet. This does reaffirm my hypothesis further.

I glanced again towards the emergency exit, but surprisingly I found both Hirata and Horikita gone. Perhaps that position had been compromised, this was another unexpected event.

I pulled Ichinose back deeper behind the panel, taking us out of the vision from the emergency exit. Ichinose was about to make a small squeak but I covered her mouth with my hand.

Now the exit wasn't visible to us and we weren't visible to the exit, so if someone comes from the exit they won't know about the two of us hiding behind the panel. Mostly nothing was visible to us now, only sound can be heard of punches and knees being banged.

(Author's note: If you compare to previous pic you can see that Ayanokouji and Ichinose have moved deeper into the panel opening and Horikita and Hirata have suddenly left the scene)

"Don't move, things will get serious now." I whispered in Ichinose's ear. Removing my hand slowly from her mouth.

"But why are we hiding?" She whispered back, confused by my moves.

I wonder what made Hirata and Horikita leave, but indeed traps were expected thus decoys were necessary at the vulnerable position.

I slowly peeked to find the exit empty, so that position was compromised after all. Judging from the periodical screams seems like Class C students were still having fun.

Suddenly sounds of footsteps echoed from the main entrance, everyone in the room went silent in anticipation. The door of the main entrance opened slowly and a familiar voice was heard.

"Kukuku, seems like you all had your share of fun with the broken chimp."

So he is here at last.

--

(Author's note: Long time no see! Well this time I was late cuz I was working on the other Honami one shot so if you like this story then make sure to check that out as well!

And for the rest of the time I made a some suzune ga kill art lol)

Chapter- 12

Chapter- 12

(Ayanokouji's POV continues)

"Kukuku, seems like you all had your share of fun with the broken chimp."

So he is here at last.

"Y-yes sir." The voice of Manabe had suddenly lost the confidence. Apparently she was also lured into all this by Ryuuen.

Ichinose glanced at me and I gestured to her to stay silent by putting a finger on my lips.

"Did anyone see you?" Ryuuen asked

"We checked before walking in here no one was here but only her." Manabe answered.

While the conversation between them was going on I closed the distance between me and Ichinose, my lips reached her ears and I softly whispered the words.

"Get out of here without looking back when I signal you."

A hint of red showed up on Ichinose's cheeks, but she gathered herself soon and nodded back in agreement.

"But Ryuuen-san-"

"Now get out of here, it is enough for today. Continue this mess later." With a hint of reassurance for their safety Ryuuen dismissed them.

I had missed a small part of their conversation. However, we must get out of here with the evidence.

After the sounds of footsteps they were gone, hopefully Ryuuen won't find us her-

"Now come out of hiding already, the other two baboons on the emergency exit are already gone." Ryuuen spoke from his position. Apparently he had figured out someone is hiding here as well.

Without a delay I pulled Ichinose to get out, but didn't push her strongly enough so that it won't look like she was shoved. She walked out without looking back. Fortunately, she didn't squeak this time, apparently her head is occupied with strategies against Ryuuen.

(Author's note: So well Ayano pulled her like this and she walked out. Our Ryuuen is a purple dot now, while Manabe and her friends are lost now.)

"Ryuuen, this time you aren't getting out of it. I have clear evidence against the student's of your class."

Without letting Ryuuen have a chance to think she spoke to him in a stern tone which was another new discovery today.

"So it was you. I thought you would be eliminated with Suzune." Ryuuen casually ignored the threat by Ichinose.

It seems like he doesn't know who got wiped out on emergency exit.

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

"Nevermind that, what were you talking about?"

"I am going to pass the video of Class C students bullying Karuizawa, to the school authorities."

I can't see them but I can feel the weight behind those words.

Apparently Ichinose wasn't consoling Karuizawa right now, I wonder why Karuizawa isn't saying anything. Perhaps she passed out from all this.

"That is an interesting prospect but I have a deal that might interest you."

"There is nothing that can get you out of this Ryuuen." She repeated herself.
"Kei Karuizawa, Kushida Kikyo and Satsuki Shinohara." He recited the three names in one breath.

I can't see her face but this is another unexpected development, I wonder how Ichinose will handle it.

"How-"

"You keep this a secret and I will guarantee you that you won't lose these 150 class points."

Ryuuen proposed the deal. Tables are turned right now we are the ones who are in a pickle, naturally he had a plan if he walked down here so confidently to reveal himself.

"So what will it be, Ichinose? Will you sacrifice 150 class points to save a student?"
Ryuuen pressured her for an answer, from here I can only wish that she agrees to his deal. But Ichinose remained silent.

"If you do leak this evidence to school, then I would tell everyone that you are the one who provided me the names of all VIPs of Class D."
Ryuuen dropped another hammer on Ichinose.

"That's enough Ryuuen, I guarantee you that I will not leak the evidence to school. In exchange don't attack Class D in this test."
"Kukuku, such a shameless woman you are. You agree to sacrifice another classmate the moment I brought the threat upon you. I like the way you think."

"You can think whatever you like. But do follow your end of the deal." Ichinose retorted.

It is rather odd for Ichinose to be afraid of these rumors. For someone as popular as her there shouldn't be anything fatal in rumors as such.

"Once this test is over the VIP names are useless, I will leak this footage after the test.. . . Is that what you are thinking?"

Ryuuen guessed the possible counter to this deal, but I can't see that strategy working.

"If you do know that then why are you proposing a deal like this?" Ichinose retorted.

"Just to let you know that won't work."

"You are sorely mistaken."

"Don't worry you will know soon."

Ryuuen is right, Karuizawa would never let it be revealed that she was crushed by some girls of Class C. If that happens she will lose her position in the class and will be marked as a fraud.

Soon the other girls who were oppressed by Karuizawa will rise against her and take her down. Once again making her prime victim of bullying.

"There is not much to do in this Ichinose, you must accept whatever condition I put here. I am in charge." Ryuuen asserted his dominance in the deal.

"Conclude this already." Her voice sounded frustrated.

"Delete this evidence in front of me and in return I will not reveal the names of the VIPs of your class."

"Done." Ichinose replied after a brief moment.

"There is one more condition."

"Huh?"

"Leave this chimp alone and come have lunch with me." Ryuuen added yet another condition.

He is asking her to leave Karuizawa alone, this move has an unnatural depth to it. I wonder if he actually played it knowingly or just wants to spend time with Ichinose.

This deal can be summarized as Ryuuen crushing a class leader (Karuizawa) in exchange of 150 class points.

"The deal has already concluded there is no reason for me to follow any additional condition now."

"This is a rather passive request, following this will strengthen our bond .. . And also avoid any backstabbing."

It is apparent Ryuuen doesn't want Ichinose to console Karuizawa, what he just implied was that if Ichinose doesn't follow his order then he will break the deal.

Ryuuen walked out of the switch room. Wisely, Ichinose followed him.

Ichinose must be having a hard time being on the short end of this deal. Even if she does not reveal the evidence Karuizawa will be bullied further by Manabe and even if she does then Karuizawa will be destroyed.. . . That is what Ichinose and Ryuuen think.

I was successful in hiding my existence in all this from Ryuuen.

But what actually matters is that now I can play my part here.

I can rebuild the foundation for the girl named Karuizawa. She has been thoroughly broken so it will be a rather easy task to blackmail her into work.

(Author's note: Here Ayano doesn't know about Karuizawa having a parasite nature since it was never revealed to him that Hirata and Karuizawa are a fake couple. So he doesn't plan to make himself the next host for her.

What does this mean? Karuizawa will be his tool or partner in crime [whichever you prefer. Not my place to chose]. But, if their ship will sail or not is an ambiguous case now unlike in real LN where it is kinda confirmed and sailing strong)

Out of all things Ryuuen wanted to avoid this happening, that is the prime reason he took Ichinose with himself. If someone rebuilds Karuizawa here then his move to crush a class leader would be dulled if not nullified.

I walked out of hiding to find Karuizawa tuned out as her eyes reflected the dull light of the room.

I assume she is still gaining her consciousness a little by little. I kneeled down to get my face into her vision.

"Huh? What are you doing here?!" She snapped into reality on identifying me.

Soon I told her I had witnessed everything and I know every secret about her. Although it was a bluff she wasn't able to catch it in her disoriented state and narrated her whole past of a gruesome series of torture inflicted on her.

Seemingly her strategy to avoid her past to catch up is to aggressively climb the social ladder. It is rather fortunate for her to have someone like Hirata who has a high social value.

But now this strategy had fallen apart and her past has leaked out.

"Now that your past is returning what is your plan?" I asked Karuizawa in an indifferent tone.

"I have been stomped by everyone in the past, they have stomped and stomped until nothing was left to stomp on. Do you think this is anything new for me?"
"It is good you have an idea of your situation, but that knowledge doesn't get you out of it." I rebuked her

"There is no way to get out now, I will just give up on my dreams and die."

"Huh?"

Is she planning suicide?
"Nevermind that, I will just live my life hiding now. There is no way to get out of this." Her eyes lost the faint light that was lingering deep within as she said those words.

"I have a way out of this for you."
"Stop joking around, you are not being funny."
I took out my cell phone and showed her the pictures of Manabe beating her. I had shot these pictures with my cellphone when I had the chance to do so.

"I am not joking."

Her eyes widened on the possibility of being saved from the hell that awaits her, the weight behind my words had increased several folds after I revealed the evidence.

"They will not bother you around from now."
"Why are you doing this for me?" She said with her eyes beaming with happiness.

"Kindness has nothing to do with it. Do you have any problems with this arrangement?"

Without waiting for her answer I spoke ahead. It is not like she has a choice in all this.

"All I want is for people to cooperate with me. I want you to assist me

in the future, doing whatever I need."

"What? Assist? What do you want me to do?"

"If things continue as they are, Class D will never overtake Class A. While the individual students within Class D certainly aren't incapable, we lack a sense of unity. Our class is scattered. However, if you control the girls under you for me, the situation will gradually improve."

Her social pull amongst her group made her an even more valuable ally than Horikita.

But the presence of Ichinose minimizes her use to a great extent, the only time I will actually need her is to pry into the group of girls that she controls.

"What are you trying to..."

Up until now, she'd only ever seen me as a lowly, unobtrusive guy.

Seeing my true self must've terrified her. But I was done explaining. Besides the less I talked, the more terrifying I would appear. The less she would resist.

"There is nothing you can do right now, your identity as VIP and your past has already been revealed to Ryuuen and some other people."
"What?! Who else knows?!" She asked frantically

"The leaders of our class know about it, you don't need to know the names."
"Huh?! Tell me now I need to know about them."
"I don't owe you any answers, stop ordering around."
She opened her mouth again to say something but closed it immediately when her eyes met mine. The prospect of opposing me should not exist for her.

"Ok, what do you want me to do?"
"Satsuki Shinohara and Kushida Kikyo are the other two VIPs beside you, track down the list of people that know their true identities."

--

Later we both moved out of the switch room from different entrances at different times. I made sure that no one had spotted me going out of there.

Once the signal had returned I discovered several messages from Horikita and Ichinose.

We will meet you in your room in the evening.

Amidst the pool of texts I read this message by Horikita. It will be easy to set the meeting in my room given Hirata and I both are present there. But Koenji. . .. .

Nevermind that we will meet up in my room.

The next message showed how she realized the scenario devolving by the presence of Koenji.

By evening I went to Horikita's room, Ichinose and Hirata were already sitting there waiting for me. Perhaps I was late. . .

"Sorry for being late."
"No, it's okay Ayanokouji-kun we were early here, you aren't late." Hirata reassured me, his voice was heavy and sad.

"Oh ok."

"Now can you tell me what happened there once we left?" Horikita demanded answers.

For a brief moment my eyes met with those of Ichinose. The fact that Horikita does not know about the events that happened after she left implies that Ichinose had waited for me to narrate all that myself rather than doing so herself. If she had done that she would've ended up revealing something that I would've decided to conceal.

Down there she had splendidly handled such a tough situation. Even now she and Horikita are following my moves without question, in expectation that I will lead them to a better result. But both of them would be disappointed this time.

"Let's talk about it in a sequence, why did you two leave suddenly?" Ichinose asked.

"Sudou-kun suddenly showed up on the stairs. Once I spotted him, both of us ran towards him before he could yell anything." Hirata answered.

"Huh? Why would Sudou suddenly show up there?" Ichinose asked dumbfounded.

True, the way Sudoku showed up all of a sudden is very random.

"He said someone texted him that Horikita-san had called him to the switch room to talk personally in a secluded place."

When Hirata stopped all eyes turned towards Horikita.

"No, I hadn't invited him. Someone else has played him."
"Did you ask who it was?"

"He said he didn't remember the name and now he can't find the message."
This isn't good, it appears like the traitor does have a good idea of our Class. To know that Sudou likes Horikita and manipulate that secret so skillfully, it can also be Ryuuen since he also knows Sudou is obsessed with her.

"I see."

"We didn't want him to mess up the events going in the switch room so we left the deck with him."

"Understandable"

So Sudou was convinced that they were alone there. Finding Horikita with Hirata alone in the secluded place like that must have raised his suspicion to unhealthy levels.

"Now that aside, what happened when we left?" Hirata asked anxiously, he still hadn't forgotten about Karuizawa getting beaten up.

"Once you left, we immediately caught Manabe and other's red handed. But Karuizawa is disoriented about this matter and does not know about your participation in this, so I think it will be better if we don't talk about this topic with her." I reassured him while misleading simultaneously but. .

"Horikita-san, had you not stopped me at that time we could've caught them sooner and also delivered less damage to Karuizawa-san." Hirata didn't pay much attention to it, instead he reprimanded Horikita, not in an attacking manner but more like admitting it.

"We needed more evidence Hirata-kun, had you revealed yourself before we might not have collected enough evidence." Ichinose supported Horikita's actions.

I am already making up a different story and hiding Ryuuen's participation in all this from Hirata. Hopefully Ichinose can follow along.

"But still we didn't make much difference and it wasn't necessary after all." Hirata retorted once more but this time Horikita had had enough.

"We are here to do something you can't do yourself, you shouldn't complain just because we didn't make things perfect, our actions have made things better for Karuizawa and you should be thankful for it."
"I-"
"Here we are helping you by going out of our way, don't take it for granted. You understand?" Horikita began her verbal beatdown.

"I am sorry I got carried away." Hirata apologized.

After a moment of silence he spoke again.

"Anyways, we should now send this evidence to school."

Ichinose looked at me, sending this evidence to school means to lose 150 points. That is the deal she had signed with Ryuuen, but Hirata is oblivious of that. We will need to make up another lie here.

"Before that, Hirata, do you remember that the one who sent the anonymous message knew the identity of Karuizawa?" I asked

"Yes, what about it?"
"Manabe know that Karuizawa is the VIP, if we attack them with this they will attack back,"

"That doesn't mean we can leave things the way they are,"
"We have made a deal with Manabe, she will not reveal the name of VIP instead protect it for us and also she will never bully Karuizawa again if we don't give this to school."
"But-"
"Your goal was to end this without hurting any party wasn't it? This way no one will be hurt and also bullying will stop."
Ichinose looked at me again, she was silent in all this since she didn't have any idea what kind of lie I was making. But as of now there isn't much to hide from Ichinose and Horikita, rather now I must show them that following me has got them in trouble now.

"I understand." Hirata agreed to me with a heavy heart.

"Please don't talk about this topic with Karuizawa, she has no knowledge that you had participation in all this."
"Sure. . Right now I need some time to think about all this and the test. I will get going now."
With that Hirata left the room, leaving me alone with two girls in the room.

"It all went actually better than I expected." Horikita sighed.

"That's not the case."

"Huh?"
My eyes met with Ichinose who had been silent all this time. I nodded slightly, signaling her to reveal the truth to Horikita.

After that Ichinose narrated the true events slowly. Horikita's gaze sharpened when faced with bitter truth.

"What do you mean that Ryuuen knows the identity of all the VIPs?!" Horikita snapped at Ichinose

"I am afraid that somehow he has figured it out or the traitor has given out the names of the VIPs. Whichever the case, we made a deal that I will delete the evidence if he doesn't use the names of VIPs against our class."
"Ugh, what were you doing in all this?" She asked, looking towards me.

"I was hiding from Ryuuen."

"But you solved it all in the end right?"
With anticipation in their eyes both looked at me.

"No, Ryuuen has successfully crushed Karuizawa. A leader of Class D."
"What?"

"He had the upper hand here, making a comeback in such a situation wasn't possible."

"But Ayanokouji-kun, you told Hirata that Manabe and her friends won't bully Karuizawa further. Was that also a lie?"
"Yes, they would again prey on Karuizawa when they get the chance. We will have to deal with this situation again when time comes, but for now I think they are satisfied with what they did."

"Oh. ."

Revealing that I had saved Karuizawa from all this would make them think that we have won, that would ultimately result in them depending more on me more in the coming future.

On top of that, since the start of the semester both of them had been observing me. This failure would dull their interest in my abilities and rather give me some peaceful time.

"I am not that concerned about saving Karuizawa but the traitor of our class had passed the names of VIPs, we absolutely need to find them."

Horikita was slowly losing her cool, the turncoat of our class was delivering more and more damage to us. But I wonder if they were actually targeting Karuizawa.

Whatever the case, I have my own plans to put a stop on all this.

Chapter- 13

Chapter- 13 Ichinose's POV

(A/N: This is Ichinose's POV of the last day of test, to refresh your memory in last meeting every class of Dragon group have revealed their identities except Class A. )

Today is the fourth and the last day of the Zodiac sign test. Yesterday was full of unpleasant surprises. I still can't believe I have let a classmate in danger just because I wanted to save Class points for our class.

Why did I do that? I asked myself.

A voice within me answered I was confident that even if I made a wrong move by betraying Karuizawa-san then Ayanokouji-kun would still act as the backup and save the day. However, he didn't do anything at all.

Or was he not able to do anything?

Chabashira sensei had asked us to unravel the student named Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. But venturing in unknown territory I have once betrayed my own principles. Suddenly discarding his strategies wouldn't solve anything since his plans aim to help the class, but from now I must be cautious on my part, rather than blindly charging ahead.

I was done eating my breakfast and now it was time for the second last meeting of the Dragon group. At this moment we all know very well that the VIP is someone among the Class A students since the rest of us have revealed our identities.

We all gathered in the room one more time, right now we need to make Class A speak if we intend to draw out the VIP. Guessing the VIP out of the Class A members would be a high risk approach as the penalty to be wrong is fifty points.

"We have something to say." To my surprise Katsuragi broke the silence. His words astonished most of us in the room.

Ryuuen flashed his grin, celebrating the fact that he had successfully breached Katsuragi's castle and made Katsuragi himself speak out of all people.

"Go ahead."

"I have put in a lot of thought since you all have revealed your identities-" Katsuragi said.

"And now you know there is nowhere to run." Ryuuen spoke before Katsuragi could end his statement.

"No, that is not it. Rather the issue might lie somewhere outside our members in this group."

Silence followed his words since we weren't able to grasp what he was trying to get at.

"At this very moment we will reveal our identities as well."

"What?!"

"Kukukuku"

His words didn't make any sense. He should protect the identity of the VIP at any cost and yet Katsuragi was ready to throw it away.

"Katsuragi, if you do plan on revealing the VIP then I suggest that you do this in the last hour of answering the test so no one has a chance to turn traitor on you." Out of all the people, Kanzaki was the one who wanted to take down the Class A most, but even he didn't want to win like this without reasoning.

"Your suggestion is really appreciated, Kanzaki. But, at the moment it is not needed."
"What do you mean?"

"Our class doesn't have the VIP of the Dragon group." Katsuragi admitted.

Everyone had a puzzled expression as Katsuragi handed his phone with those of the other members to Kanzaki and Ryuuen to check and eventually to us. Even Ryuuen had stopped smiling at this point and was checking the authenticity of the mail.

From what it looks at the moment, there is no VIP in the Dragon group.

"What does this mean?"

Is this a fault on the school's part? Did they send wrong mail or had someone in the Dragon group altered the mail sent by school.

"Kukuku, we all know where this is going." Ryuuen was the first one to say it.

"Someone has modified the school mail." Katsuragi added.

On acknowledging the prospect of that happening all eyes were on Class A. They were the prime suspect of changing the mail in the time gap between the last meeting and this one.

But, I was observing Katsuragi, he wasn't concerned in the slightest when we started revealing our identities. What actually shocked him was the fact that none of us were VIP. This does hint that he himself was sure that the VIP of Dragon group wasn't in his class.

"Katsuragi, you do understand that altering the mail from school has severe punishment, right?" Kanzaki warned him.
"I understand that very well and that in particular is the reason my class would never have opted for that method. It is someone else from the Dragon group who has done it. If we are successful in driving a member of the Dragon group to the point of expulsion then that in itself would be an achievement for us."

He is correct, members of the Dragon group are the powerhouse of each class. Losing any of them would mean a huge loss to the class.

I looked towards Ryuuen who was silently looking at the events unfolding. On sensing my gaze he turned towards me and our eyes met for a second, it reminded me of the events from yesterday. I quickly averted my gaze and looked towards Kanzaki who seemed to be lost in thoughts.

If it is not Katsuragi then there is a chance that one of those two have done this. But then again there is one last person who might be able to do it.

I didn't look at Ayanokouji-kun. However, deep down I considered the possibility that he might've done it without informing any of us, but that would mean that Class D had four VIPs in total which shouldn't be possible assuming each class has an equal number of VIPs.

The time indicated that the meeting was about to end now.

"To whoever has adjusted the mail, still have time. I suggest you talk to your homeroom teacher and reveal your true identity." Katsuragi ended the meeting with his last warning.

Members from Class D were completely silent the whole meeting. We had already dealt with yesterday and now this was happening in the Dragon group.

Even so, this isn't the time to back down, everyone is doing their best in their own groups. I can't take a lax approach to this at any cost.

I texted in the group which we had created for discussing this exam.

Next meeting is the last one, please assemble to your rooms and discuss with your groupmates one more time.

Everyone walked out of the meeting room of Dragon group except Class D.

"Horikita-san I think we should talk about this somewhere else."
She nodded slightly, still lost in thoughts on how to proceed.

"You too Ayanokouji-kun and Matsushita-san, I think it will take all of us to find the VIP."

"Sure thing, let's see where this goes."

After a few minutes we all assembled in my room, Kushida-san and Mii-chan had left to talk to their own groups. Ayanokouji-kun sat on the chair while Horikita and Matsushita sat with me on the bed.

"This is totally confusing. I don't understand how there is no VIP in the Dragon group."
"We know that the mail from the school has been altered, but it doesn't make sense one would risk expulsion for some class points." Horikita pointed out.

"Just like you said Horikita-san taking such high risk for low reward won't make sense, that is why I think that the mail hasn't been modified at all." I replied.

Everyone looked at me silently, then Horikita spoke again.

"They can't possibly bring someone else's phone, since we checked the other mails and details to make sure the phone belongs to the respective owner. Those details can't lie. . . . . .. ."
She stopped speaking mid sentence as it stuck her, our eyes met and I flashed her a smile.

"You understand now right?" I said.

"What? What?" Matsushita asked impatiently.

"The mails and logs could've been an attempt to misdirect us if it is somehow possible to transfer the database of one cell phone to another." Horikita explained her deduction.

"So you mean that the VIP didn't change the mail at all as instructed but they changed the database of another cell to make it look like it is theirs?"

Matsushita completed the sentence after a moment of silence, as I thought she also has considerable deductive skills even if not on par with Horikita. Ayanokouji-kun was listening to all this sitting on the chair with an indifferent expression.

"Yes, if you exchange the cell phone of the VIP of your group with someone who is not the VIP in other group then you can easily make it look like your class doesn't have the VIP." Horikita added.

"I will contact Chabashira-sensei now to confirm our theory."
With that said I pulled out my phone and called Chabashira-sensei.

"Ichinose Honami?"

"Good afternoon, Chabashira-sensei."
"Good afternoon to you too, how may I help you?" She didn't sound particularly enthusiastic about it.

"I wanted to ask you a question."
"What did you want to ask?"
"I wanted to ask if I provided enough private points, can I transfer the email, call history and other info of their cellphone to someone else's cell phone?"
"As long as you don't do that with the mail sent by school you can transfer the rest. You don't even need to pay private points to do so, but rather expend some effort on it." Even though she had rebuked me there was a small hint of excitement in her voice.

"I see, thanks a lot for informing me. Hope you have a good day."

"You, too."

Beep

"According to sensei we don't need private points to replicate the information. So there is a high chance that someone has done the same and tricked other's into it."
Horikita nodded at me slightly, she was getting a grasp of the situation little by little. Now that has been established of what the VIP has done now it begs the question what is the loophole in that plan.

"Can you change the sim cards as well?" Horikita-san asked.

Matsushita looked at her phone trying to find a place from where she could open it. But unlike the common cell phones, these cell phones which the school provided didn't open up at all.

"Doesn't seem like it." Matsushita-san answered.

That concludes sim cards are locked in their respective phones.

"You have the phone numbers of everyone in the Dragon group, right?" Horikita-san asked me.

"Yes, I do. We can compare the numbers with their real number to find the VIP. But that also needs us to get their phone number from an authentic source."

"To do that first we should narrow down the target."
"If you ask me to pick a target then I would pick Class B or Class C." Matsushita said.

"Why not Class A though?" I asked.
"Katsuragi looked pretty surprised when we concluded that the VIP was in Class A. That means he was sure that the VIP wasn't in his class."
So you have noticed that as well.

"Yes, I have witnessed the same." I supported her idea.

"You have something to say, Ayanokouji-kun?" Matsuhita suddenly threw the ball in his court, thus breaking his meditation.

"It is as you said. Class A seems innocent, if you ask me who to target I would choose Class C." Oh he was actually listening to us.

"Any particular reason for that?" Horikita inquired.
"Ryuuen was the first one to suggest we show our phones and Kanzaki agreed to him."

That opens up two possibilities, either Class C had the VIP and Ryuuen had already changed the cell phones or Class B had the VIP and Kanzaki had already changed the cell phones. Since Ryuuen was the only one who knew when he would ask people to reveal their identities, it is more likely that Ryuuen's class had the VIP and he changed it first.

"That being said, how do we fish out their real phone numbers?"

I took out the list of participants from Class C.

Ryuuen Kakeru, Sonoda Masashi, Satoru Kaneda and lastly Shiina Hiyori.

Right now we need to find out the phone numbers of these individuals from an authentic source, combined with the fact that the source shouldn't figure out our strategy.

"Kanzaki would have the phone number of Ryuuen, he was associated with him on an island exam. They would've been in contact after that."
"Yes you are right Horikita-san, but how will we convince Kanzaki to share the details?"

Once again Horikita felt silent, if I do call Kanzaki for the details then he would grow suspicious. Given his motivation is to reach Class A perhaps we can lie to him about this. .. still I don't see a way to trick-

"I will call him, I have a plan to make him cooperate." Horikita took the command.

"What? Do you have a plan?"
"Yes. Send me his phone number."

I sent the contact info on her phone, there was a little doubt in my heart that she might mess up the situation. But again I must stay true to my principles and put my faith in my friends.

She made the call and put it on the loudspeaker for us to listen.

"Good afternoon, Horikita-san." A calm voice answered back.

"Good afternoon, Kanzaki. I will be to the point, I need the contact info of members of Class C in the Dragon group. Do you have any of them?"

Horikita cut to the chase and jumped the gun on Kanzaki.

"I think I deserve an explanation before fulfilling your demand." Naturally, Kanzaki didn't understand what was going on and demanded an explanation.
"Yes, sure."

"Why do you need their contact info?"
"I suspect that the VIP is from Class A or Class C. I think I can get closer to the VIP if I talk to them individually on call."

"And you aren't going to tell me what that method is, right?"

"Of course not."
"Understandable. Next, why do you not suspect Class B?"

He asked it in a roundabout way to understand how she is narrowing down her target so that he can get a hint to how to find the VIP.

"It is not like I don't suspect Class B at all. If Class A and Class C give a negative result for VIP hunt then that would automatically conclude that your Class has the VIP."

Now she has turned the table. If Kanzaki doesn't have the VIP in his class then he shouldn't have any problem in cooperating with Horikita, but if he does deny cooperation then it would greatly hint the location of VIP as Class B.

"What do I have in this?" He asked

"The rate at which Class C is rising might soon prove to be a threat to you, Class A is our mutual enemy. Whichever class the VIP comes out to be, it will be our mutual profit." Horikita had already planned the deal to such an extent, her negotiation skills are truly admirable.

After a long silence Kanzaki replied.

"Very well, but I also have one more question."

"Sure."

"Ichinose had noted down the phone numbers of the members, why do you need to call me to get the phone numbers?" Kanzaki caught the loophole.

"Right now she is meeting up with our homeroom teacher to discuss the matter of false mail in Dragon group. We are short on time, that is why we have called you."

Combined with negotiating skills she also has great acting skills, she came up with a lie in an instant and also executed it smoothly.

"If that is true then how would you get my phone number?" But Kanzaki was also clever.

"I have noted your number down myself."
"Why?"
"Katsuragi who is way too cautious to take a helping hand and Ryuuen who is far too untrustworthy to even offer a helping hand. You would be the only class leader I can expect a partnership from." Horikita had reasoned her way back into it within moments of thoughts.

"The fact that our partnership comes from the process of elimination hurts me. But since it will mutually profit us I don't have any reason to deny it."

There is a chance that Horikita might fail in identifying the VIP, but the risk isn't high on Kanzaki's part either. He just needs to give phone numbers that aren't even of his class, that is why he didn't have any reason to deny this request to begin with, he was just digging for any hints he could derive from this conversation.

The information isn't worth this much trouble but to actually convince him to share the information without revealing her own plan is splendid.
"Yes."
"I have the contact info of Ryuuen, Kaneda and Katsuragi. I will send them to you via mail."

I wonder why he has the phone numbers of Kaneda and Katsuragi, I thought he was only in contact with Ryuuen. Perhaps he has more to him than we were told by Ayanokouji-kun. I looked towards him, and just like always he observed everything silently.

"Thanks."
Beep

"Wao, Horikita-san, that was something else. I didn't think you would be so good at conversation." Matsuhita acknowledged her abilities.

A notification indicated that Kanzaki has sent the contact details. We compared them to the phone numbers I have noted down and to my surprise Kaneda's phone number didn't match the one I noted.

"Kaneda's number doesn't match with the one Kanzaki has provided."

"So we can say that Kaneda has his call logs and other information to a different phone." Matsushita stated with her eyes sparkling with hope and uncertainty.

"Yes, that is true but before we conclude that he is the VIP we should dig out about other Class C members as well."
Reporting Kaneda already has high risk to it, since we aren't sure about other individuals.

"But how do we find out about other members?" Horikita asked.

That is another problem.

"I will try to ask Hirata about this. Since I don't have many connections with Class C students." I replied.

"We should also ask Kushida-san for help, she has a few friends in Class C if I remember right."
On hearing Matsushita's suggestion I looked towards Ayanokouji-kun, as if trying to ask if it was a good move to do that. But he didn't give back any reaction so I turned towards Horikita.

"Kushida and Hirata are members of the same group. If we take up the time of both then the progress of their group will suffer. For now I think Hirata is enough for the job."

Horikita discarded the possibility of telling Kushida about all this. Since, at the end she is the prime suspect of being the traitor of our class.

I called Hirata and within a few minutes he was in the room. It took me a while to explain the situation, he understood it easily as expected from him.

"Sorry to disturb you before your last meeting." I said apologetically.

"It is completely fine Ichinose-san, unlike you we weren't able to discuss anything fruitful at the moment." Hirata replied.

"Oh, sorry to hear that."

"It will take me an hour, since I don't know anything about these individuals it might be hard to find their contact info considering that everyone is suspicious right now due to the special exam going on."
"I understand that fact very well, but you are the only hope for the Dragon group right now. This is the last step for us to reach the VIP."

"I am glad that I am able to help you Ichinose-san"
With those words the man on mission left the room. I wonder how he will do his job but I am sure he won't fail.

"Let's meet again after lunch, once Hirata-kun is back we can wind up this test for the Dragon group." I said, my voice filled with determination.

I had a quick lunch alongside Matsushita. The hour was filled with anticipation as I tried to calculate if Hirata could actually succeed in the task he was given.

"What are you thinking, Ichinose-san?"
"I am thinking if Hirata will actually be able to do it alone and if I should've tagged along with him."
"Now there is no point considering it, we must put our faith in him. Well if you look at the bright side the guy's popularity soars higher than the highest skyscrapers you know."

"Haha, you are right. I should put faith in my friends."

Shortly after we were done with the lunch, I returned to my room with Matsushita. Shortly Horikita and Ayanokouji joined us as well.

Lastly the man on whom the end of this day depends entered the room.

"I have found out the contact details of Sonoda Masashi from a reliable source."
Phew

"But as for Shiina Hiyori, none of the Class C students I knew had her number. Even they themselves weren't able to find it, so at last a friend of mine asked her for her number."
That opens up room for doubt, since if she was the VIP and her phone was changed she would never give her own number to anyone, even their classmate.

Regardless, I am sure Hirata has yielded the best possible result there could've been.

Sharing the phone numbers with us he left the room.

"The numbers match the ones that I have noted down. It is a little ambiguous but I think we should finalize Kaneda as the VIP." I proposed.
"We might lose 50cp if we are wrong." Horikita warned.

"Let's vote if we should take this risk or not." Matsushita said

Horikita was the only one who didn't want to report Kaneda as VIP, looking at Ayanokouji-kun agreeing, I felt reassurance once again. With a majority of three the decision was finalized.

Chapter- 14

Chapter- 14 (Ryuuen's POV) (Day 3 night)

Opening the wounds of the past has some different taste to it than giving new wounds. Guessing the weakness of Karuizawa and then exploiting it felt blissful, but what entertained me more was the smooth aftermath of it, in which Ichinose also got demolished.

Hopefully, she understands now that she isn't in the same league as me. Moving on from that, now I have the end of this test in my hand, the names of all VIPs are just waiting to get reported by me.

As for the Dragon group, I knew that hiding the VIP there would be near impossible. But thanks to the fool Katsuragi who won't say a thing I can play the strategy I want to.

If I exchanged the phone of the VIP from our class with someone who is not in the group, then it will simply make them disappear. Problem with this plan was that if everyone reveals their identity then the fact that there is no VIP would come into light and ultimately raise suspicion on us.

But then again that situation was easily avoided since Katsuragi never opened his mouth to reveal the identities of his class. Thus, everyone thinks that the VIP is in Class A, easy money.

Of course I can't discard the possibility of him changing his policy when faced with this sudden revelation. I have prepared countermeasures if Katsuragi does somehow decide to put an end to his confusion by showing everyone that he doesn't have a VIP.

Night was still young so I decided to take a detour towards the upper deck where one can see the night sky clearly. As expected the place was dead except this one guy who was leaning at the railing silently, watching the sea as if it was something interesting.

Usually I don't give second thoughts to others but I decided to check out for something suspicious and walked towards the silhouette.

My loud footsteps were easy to sense and he turned his face to me. The light revealed the face. . .

"Ugh, it is you."
".."

It was that spineless guy from Dragon group. I walked to the railing beside him and leaned against it. He stood there silently, apparently too terrified to even move a muscle.

I gazed into the sea to understand what he had been looking at, nothing looked back at me but the mundane voice of waves crashing a little here and there.

"Who do you think is the VIP of the Dragon group?" I asked him without looking at him.

But again he didn't answer. . this guy.. Is he too scared to even speak?

"I asked you something."
"Even if I knew I wouldn't tell you." he answered in a nonchalant voice.

I slowly turned my head to look at him.

"I mean I don't know who the VIP is." he changed his statement fast.

"Sensibility is the key to long life." I responded.

".."

"Now get lost, I am not a fan of two dudes looking at the sky together at night."

With that he left. Perhaps this feeble chimp is the best Class D can offer against the Dragons. After some time I returned back to my room and slept.

The next day, as I had predicted, Katsuragi decided to reveal the identities from his class in the Dragon group. But as I said it was expected.

In the last meeting, when we shared our phones we had revealed our phone numbers at that moment, which was the only key to get to the VIP. So naturally if I play that move then I would prepare a decoy in case the members start tracing down the VIP once they figure out what happened.

Phone numbers like mine or Kaneda's can be found easily without much digging, thankfully none of us were VIP. The VIP of the Dragon group was of course from our class, that is Shiina Hiyori.

I never actually understood that girl much, but the good thing is that unlike me or Kaneda the girl's phone number was nearly impossible to find due to her lack of activity in class.

When the test had started I proposed my strategy to her and she agreed to it amiably. Now, the thing I wanted to do was not only hide her but also prepare a decoy to mislead, for this best choice was Kaneda.

Thus as planned I changed the phones of both Kaneda and Shiina with someone outside the group. This way if people start looking for the numbers they would end up catching Kaneda before Shiina, not only will this keep the identity of VIP safe but also end the search of the enemy at the wrong destination.

A perfect plan to victory over the Dragon group. Once the first meeting ended within a few hours the traitor sprouted on the battlefield.

"The test has ended for the Dragon group. Those in the Dragon group are no longer required to participate any further. Please do not disturb the other students."

"Kukuku, this is the thrill of life."

The traitor has successfully fallen into my trap. I wonder which class was the reckless one, if I had to guess it would be the monkey class. Ichinose did happen to write all our numbers after all. But then again Kanzaki also had Kaneda's phone number, he might've ended up dying instead.

Now all I had to do was to sit around until other groups were done with their meetings then send a barrage of names to the school.

Chapter- 15

Chapter- 15 (Ayanokouji's POV) (Day 4 after the first meeting)

"Let's meet after lunch, once Hirata-kun is back we can wind up the test for the Dragon group." Said Ichinose with enthusiasm.

Following her orders we all dispersed from the room, I wonder how much anticipation is eating them away.

Once I was done with lunch quickly, I started searching for the technician I was told about by Chabashira-sensei. The school had prepared one in case anyone had their phone damaged or wanted a replacement.

When I had asked her how I can get my sim card changed into another phone she had told me that the only way to do that was to meet this technician.

They were located in the lower deck which were usually used for meetings. I entered the room to find a young woman sitting with headphones one listening to music loud enough to be heard outside till here. So this is the technician.

"..." uttering any words is futile, I will have to wait till they notice my presence.

Slowly the chair turned towards me..

Gasp

"W-What?" On spotting me she was surprised out of her skin. She hurriedly gained her composure and turned off the music.

"How can I help you?" Her voice had that womanly touch to it.

If I request her directly to give me the list of people who have opted to change sim cards in the past four days wouldn't be sensible, she would just discard my request under the pretext of protecting privacy. But, what will happen if I.. .

"Uh, one of my friends has left their phone here in your care. I am here to recollect it." I said.

It is rather a gamble, but if she has any phones with her or if anyone has already done the modifications before then I can try to get hints on who they were.

"Young man, stop playing around. Since the start of this trip not a single student has entered this room for repair."

She was clearly annoyed by my lie, but it looked like she was more displeased by the interruption in her music. On the bright side now I can rest assured that no one has even thought about changing sim cards in the first place.

"I am sorry." With those words I left the room.
Now the next step is to confirm the phone numbers of Sonoda Masashi and Shiina Hiyori. I am sure that the details Kanzaki gave are correct, but the details Hirata will obtain might be rather questionable.

I took out my phone and started texting Manabe. Recently I have gotten a good hold over her thanks to the sacrifice of Karuizawa.

I asked them to fish for the phone numbers of Sonoda and Shiina, while also posing a few conditions that would make their hunt significantly harder and didn't leave any room for mistakes. I told Manabe how the phone might've been changed to operate with that in mind.

You know what will happen if you fail at your task. I added.

If I was in Ryuuen's place then I would prepare and easily catch prey to quench the thirst of hunters and successfully hide the real target. Whether Ryuuen had thought the same or not was another matter.

The probability that Class C didn't actually have the VIP wasn't off the table either, however right now it was most probable and the rate at which Ichinose and Horikita are progressing they will soon decide the end of this.

Within a few minutes Manabe texted back. It was a phone number followed by another text.

This is the phone number of the Sonoda guy, as for Shiina we can't find it anywhere at all.

When I was checking everyone's phone I had memorized the phone numbers of people so that I can use them later. I matched the number she texted with the number of Sonoda, thankfully they matched. If the numbers they dig match with the numbers I saw then we can conclude Kaneda is the VIP.

But unfortunately Shiina's contact information was still missing.

Did you follow the conditions I set? Yes, of course.

I want the phone number of Shiina within the next thirty minutes.

I just told you I can't find it!!

I don't want excuses, I want the phone number. Or do I need to repeat myself again.

The text was left on seen, apparently she searched for it frantically in the given time window. As long as she follows the conditions I set she won't get me the wrong number, but that also runs the risk that she might not be able to find the real number. Which will be fatal for her, or so I said.

To my surprise, within a few minutes she sent me another phone number.

I found it! Please leave me alone now.

Not so fast, explain to me how you got it.

I wouldn't have pursued the matter if the number I got was the same as the one I saw in the meeting. But actually it was a different one, so that raises Shiina Hiyori as the potential VIP. However, before I can conclude that I need to know the process from which she got this number.

She typed for a solid five minutes then sent it to me. From what it looked like Manabe couldn't actually trace out Shiina hiyori's real number at all.

So in the end she decided to ask her about her phone number, but when Shiina gave her the number she recognized the number to be one of her friend's. That meant that her friend had Shiina's phone, she traced back the number Shiina had to her best friend since they both were frank friends she sneaked up on her phone and called her own number using it to find out the real number.

Did you delete the call history?

Of course! Ryuuen will kill me if he finds out about this!

Don't worry you are safe now.

I could feel she might've collapsed in relief after seeing my text. Driven by the fear of the unknown; that is me and driven by the terror of Ryuuen, Manabe had outperformed herself in this task.
Had she been a little cautious before beating Karuizawa she wouldn't have seen this day.

With the new number of Shiina Hiyori I had two choices to report. One was Kaneda and the other was Shiina.

Since Kaneda's phone number was already with Kanzaki, they wouldn't have risked changing his phone if he was VIP. Because the threat of Kanzaki catching him would be too great, but if he was set as decoy then it would've been easy to lure anyone into this trap who had Kaneda's phone number.

As of now I have found out that Shiina also carries exchanged phones, and the method from which it was obtained isn't something Ryuuen could predict. Thus I conclude Shiina Hiyori is the VIP of the Dragon group.

Before reporting that to school I went back to Ichinose's room where everyone had gathered except Hirata. Soon he also joined us with a thin bitter smile on his face.

"I have found out the contact details of Sonoda Masashi from a reliable source."

Interesting.

"But as for Shiina Hiyori, none of the Class C students I knew had her number. Even they themselves weren't able to find it, so at last a friend of mine asked her for her number."

That is expected. Being the VIP herself she wouldn't provide her real number to even classmates at this point..

It was clearly visible Hirata was a little frustrated but one can say with confidence that he had done the best he could.

Sharing the phone numbers with us he left the room. Horikita and Matsushita looked at Ichinose in anticipation as she tallied the numbers she had got. Taking this chance I took out my phone and typed the name of VIP to the school mail, ready to send it anytime now.

"The numbers match the ones that I have noted down. It is a little ambiguous but I think we should finalize Kaneda as the VIP." Ichinose proposed. She must be under a lot of pressure to take such a risky maneuver.

"We might lose 50cp if we are wrong." Horikita's warning was sensible, but this time I had a backup planned.

"Let's vote if we should take this risk or not." Matsushita said.

The plan is to send my answer to school a moment before Ichinose sends the wrong answer so it would be like she has submitted the answer.

The voting began and Horikita was the only one who didn't want to report Kaneda as VIP. I raised my hand in support of Ichinose thus deciding the outcome of the voting.

"So then it is decided that we report Kaneda as the VIP." She said but her lips trembled a little in the fear of blame.

"Ichinose." I called out and everyone turned towards me.

"Don't hesitate, click the button in one go. If your resolve keeps wavering then it will affect your decisions in future."
While my words were meaningful to her and also I meant them. It was also a measure to make sure that she didn't stop while clicking the button midway and ended up messing up my timing to send the mail.

"Ayanokouji-kun. I understand."

With that she typed the answer and everyone's attention dialed back to her. I placed my thumb right above my phone ready to send the mail.

Once she was done typing her thumb moved towards the send button, that was when I sent my mail and so did she. The school returned the favour of the mail instantly as expected.

"The test has ended for the Dragon group. Those in the Dragon group are no longer required to participate any further. Please do not disturb the other students."

Ichinose looked up with a slight smile, if not anything at least the test for us has ended. Now sweating about the result would be fruitless. Soon the other classes will also be ending the test with their last meeting.

"If we are correct then Ryuuen will take his revenge on us sooner or later."

Ichinose stated. It was clear that she now fears Ryuuen as she saw me lose to him yesterday. Horikita was also on the same boat if I do say so.

"I think the best would be to hide the fact that we reported the VIP."

"You are right. Even though the hints will be there, he shouldn't be able to pinpoint us."

All four of us slightly nodded and decided to keep this a secret.

"Now that things have settled I will be returning to my room."

"I will do the same."
"I am glad we were able to work together."

"Likewise."

Ichinose thanked us from the bottom of her heart even though she had worked the most for the class, from regulating other groups to obtaining intel on the traitor. She has done it all.

With those parting words Horikita left and after a gap of a minute I followed my way out as well, leaving Matsushita and Ichinose alone.

I roamed around on the ship until the last group meeting started, once that happened I decided to return to my room but then I was reminded that even though everyone would have left for their meeting Koenji would still be hanging around there.

I roved around the luxury ship meaninglessly, just thinking about the past two weeks how a lot have changed in these two special exams.

Soon hunger put me out of my train of thought and I moved to the restaurant. It was basically empty but for one table, there a lone girl sat waiting for the dish she had ordered.

It was Horikita Suzune.

She spotted me as I approached her, but then suddenly our phones made the sound it makes when a school notification is there.

Rooster group has rescinded out of the special exam.

The last meeting was still going on but it seems like someone decided to turn traitor midway.

I sat on the chair beside Horikita.

"This is rather interesting. What are your thoughts on the final results?" I asked Horikita.

"I have a bad feeling about it. That is all I can say."
"Yes, correct. For now we should meet with Ichinose and decide our next move."

"Sure."
Horikita texted Ichinose to meet us in the lower deck after the last meeting ended. That place would be empty since the meetings were not held there.

As planned after eating the dinner the three of us met there. There was an awkward silence between us, usually Ichinose used to start the conversation but it looked like even she herself wasn't sure of what to say.

According to time the meeting has just ended by now.

"How should we hide from Ryuuen?" Ichinose said in a low voice. Horikita also remained silent.

The man named Ryuuen Kakeru had implanted a hint of fear in these two by finding out names of all VIPs of our class. But that isn't necessarily the end of the danger.

Before I could say anything, our phones suddenly vibrated in succession.

One, two, three, four. A total of four mails were launched in succession. Ichinose frantically checked her phone, in terror of the possibility that Ryuuen had reported all the VIPs of Class D.

But fortunately that wasn't the case, all Class D VIPs were safe. However, what did pique the interest was the short time span between the mails.

All three of us were speechless at this sudden revelation.

"We should wait till the announcement of results before discussing our next move." I suggested and both of them nodded slightly.

We stood in the deserted corridor as Ichinose fiddled with her phone, apparently answering texts of the classmates who were just as confused as us.

Soon the wait ended and the results were announced.

Rat: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.

Cow: Outcome #4. The traitor answered incorrectly.

Tiger: Outcome #2. The VIP's identity was not discovered.

Rabbit: Outcome #2. The VIP's identity was not discovered.

Dragon: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.

Snake: Outcome 3. #The traitor answered correctly.

Horse: Outcome #2. The VIP's identity was not discovered.

Sheep: Outcome 3. #The traitor answered correctly

Monkey: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.

Rooster: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly.

Dog: Outcome #2. The VIP's identity was not discovered.

Pig: Outcome 3. #The traitor answered correctly.

Based on those results, the increase or decrease in class and private

points are as follows. "Cl" and "Pr" are used to denote "class points" and

"private points," respectively.

Class A: Minus 200 cl;

Class B: No change cl;

Class C: Plus 100 cl;

Class D: Plus 100 cl;

(A/N: Current Class status:

Class A Kanzaki's Class with a 1125 points

Class B Katsuragi's Class with 900 points

Class C Ryuuen's Class 750 points

Class D 487 points.
You can check out chapter 1 of cruise ship arc, where the score before this exam started has been mentioned.)

I analyzed the result for a moment and understood what the sudden four messages by the traitor were. It was clear that Class D didn't take any damage but Ryuuen had delivered considerable damage to the upper classes alone.

This score would implant fear in anyone over the whole year, be it Class A or Class D. He alone has pulled down the two classes above him.

"I.. Don't know what to say." Ichinose understood the gravity of the situation.

I think there isn't room for doubt anymore.

"Are you two ready to take the responsibility of defeating Ryuuen in the Dragon group?" I asked them to see what they had to say on this.

"To be honest-"
"What matters more is you Ayanokouji-kun. If Ryuuen comes hunting for us he will search for you once he eliminates the two of us." Ichinose spoke before Horikita could complete her sentence.

"You are right. That is why I have a plan that would help us hide my identity."
"Why do you even need to hide your identity? It is not like you have helped us in this test." Horikita reprimanded my attempt.

".."
"What?"
I didn't actually want to take the credit of finding VIP from Ichinose. Since she was the one who negotiated with Ryuuen alone under unfair circumstances in the switch room, she had lost a considerable amount of confidence in herself.

Finding the VIP of Dragon group was supposed to boost her morale but it seems like there is no way to get out of this situation without telling them the truth.

"You see, the real VIP wasn't Kaneda."
"?!!" Both of them made perplexed expressions.

"I had sent the name of the real VIP just the moment Ichinose had sent her answer. Since the timings overlapped you weren't able to make out that someone had sent the anwer an instant before you."

"What? But then who was the real VIP?"
"Shiina Hiyori."
"How did you know?"
"I don't owe you any explanation at this point."
".." Ichinose's expression darkened a little, she wasn't exactly pleased to be tricked into overestimating her potential.

"What you have to do is to sign a deal with Kanzaki to make sure that Ryuuen doesn't find out that Class D conquered the Dragon group."
"And how do we do that?" Horikita said, snapping out of her thoughts.

I explained to Horikita the situation how Ryuuen must've attacked the classes above us and we were spared thanks to Ichinose who handled the event with Ryuuen correctly.

On hearing this Ichinose's eyes lit up again, now that reality was in front of her and that she realizes she has played even a more crucial role than me in saving Class D. Her aura has changed back to that of happiness and bliss. This proves just how much she is devoted to contributing to the class.

As I continued my explanation Horikita also understood how her negotiations with Kanzaki would further help the class to grow without being trampled over.

"I understand, I will call Kanzaki right now then."
With that she took out her phone and called Kanzaki.

"Yes?" Kanzaki's voice wasn't exactly pleased.

"Your class has reached Class A, that is a splendid achievement."
"Thanks, but I personally didn't feel much control over it." Kanzaki replied.

"I have called you today to discuss that."

"What?"
"Class C led by Ryuuen Kakeru will soon become a threat to your class."
"True."

"As you can see we have won against Ryuuen in the Dragon group."
"Wait, you mean you answered correctly?" His voice had a mixture of shock and happiness.

"Yes, but the problem is that the VIP was from Class C."
"I see, so now you are in deep waters."
"Precisely, that is why I want you to take the responsibility of finding the VIP of the Dragon group." Horikita proposed hell to Kanzaki.

"And why would I do that?"

"Right now your class is already occupied dealing with the new Class B, they will fight back for their spot vigilantly. If Class C were to join in the battle against you then you won't be able to keep up, just like the fate of the previous Class A." Horikita pointed out why Kanzaki can't stay at top alone.

"So I propose we two team up." Horikita added.

"The idea is that I will be the shield that will consume Ryuuen's wrath while you will be the sword that will skewer him."
"Precisely. I think our previous results are enough proof."

Horikita made the situation crystal clear for him to understand. Kanzaki didn't have any reason to refuse this, rather it was the only way for him to protect his spot in Class A.

"Very well. So I am the one who found the Dragon group VIP."
"Yes."

"Who was the VIP?"
"Shiina Hiyori."
"I see."

"Thanks for your cooperation."
"Wait a minute." Kanzaki stopped Horikita

"If you traced down the points they might realize that you were the ones to find it. In order to avoid that I will tell you about a Class A VIP we had found."
"By all means."
"In the Rooster group, Masumi Kamuro was the VIP our class had caught. If there are questions on the 100 points you have gained you can exchange the 50 points earned in the Dragon group with the Rooster group." This suggestion from Kanzaki showed that he is actually taking the pact seriously.

"Very well. Did you find any other VIPs as well?"

"No, but rather someone has mistaken the VIP of our class and we have earned 50 points."
"I see, I think I have shared all the intel I had with you."
"There are still 50 more points unexplained. The monkey group had ended the test on the second day, does it have any relation with Class D?"
The Monkey group reminded me of a specific person.

"Yes, Rokusuke Koenji has spotted the correct VIP in that group. His progress was completely unrelated to us." Horikita admitted bitterly.

"If that is all then I will be hanging the call."
"Sure."

Ichinose nodded at Horikita with a slight smile, our class hadn't won this but still there was a newfound hope in the eyes of the two girls standing in front of me.
With that both the class leaders were ready for the second semester to come. All in all one could say we didn't perform well at all, we weren't able to catch the renegade of our class and we barely had any impact on this exam either.

But I think I have achieved my goals. Ichinose and Horikita have understood that I wasn't a sure footing for the progress of class, Karuizawa Kei was brought back from the brink of mental breakdown. And above all I have installed a traitor in Ryuuen's class as well.

(A/N: Feel free to ask anything in related to story in commend section)

Case study and Afterword (:)

When the last chapter dropped in I had a lot of questions in comments which I thought should be publicly answered, you can skip it if you understood everything alright. Let's start with the result first.

Here I have written which class gained and lost in each group.

Rat: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly. C (-A)

Cow: Outcome #4. The traitor answered incorrectly. (-A) B

Dragon: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly. D (-C)

Snake: Outcome 3. #The traitor answered correctly. C (-A)

Sheep: Outcome 3. #The traitor answered correctly C (-B)

Monkey: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly. D (-C)

Rooster: Outcome #3. The traitor answered correctly. B (-A)

Pig: Outcome 3. #The traitor answered correctly. C (-B)

So the class name in bracket has lost 50 points in each group and the one outside bracket have gained. Now if you look at it Class D has gained 100 points due to Kouenji and Ayanokouji and thankfully haven't lost any.

As for Class A, they have lost 200 points.

First by answering wrong traitor of cow group.

Second their VIP of rooster group got caught by Class B. and rest of the 2 VIP of Class A were reported by Ryuuem.

For Class B, Kanzaki gained a 100 points from Class A in those two meetings. Now since out of three one VIP was already guessed wrong by Class A, Ryuuen can only report remaining two which cost Class B the 100 points they gained thus they had no gain.

As for Class C, they gained 200 points by beating Class A and B in 4 groups but Class D beat Class C twice so they only the final score was 100. Hope that clears up the points distribution.

Class A: Minus 200 cl;

Class B: No change cl;

Class C: Plus 100 cl;

Class D: Plus 100 cl;

Now for why Kanzaki is in Class A now. It is understandable that some people are salty that Arisu was beaten by Kanzaki cuz that doesn't makes sense, now please remember the fact the Arisu wasn't on this trip literally. Everyone from her faction were just following her one order to sabotage Katsuragi. Not that they needed to do that when Ryuuen and Kanzaki are already teaming against him and Ayanokouji is also firing stray bullets in his direction during the island.

In this story if you go back to some early volume like 1 then you will find that the Class B and A didn't have a huge gap like in real LN. The gap was gradually closed and now Katsuragi is like proved failure as a leader to Class A, so Arisu can easily take the reigns now.

Now there is one last thing I would like to answer for myself, that is why I didn't include sim card swap in all this?

Cuz if I did that then finding the VIP would become impossible if one completely changes the phone. And well Ichinose was op in Vol 4 to actually deduce the VIP after that, which I am not sure I could write so hope you enjoyed the ending we have now.

Do you still have any doubts or questions? Feel free to ask in commend section I will answer them.

Afterword:

observes silence*

So you are actually reading this.

Old rant; I was busy with family and college and wasn't able to write and all.

But well it is what it is, I am glad you sticked around to see how this volume went by. The next volume will be a rather swift one, since it will be Volume 3.5

I know not everyone enjoys the .5 volumes, but the story of 3.5 will be brand new and of course it will take significantly less time to complete since it isn't that complex but still enjoyable. So I wish you all give it a read as well once I start updating.

Volume 3.5 (Summer vacation begins)

Sleepless Night Book Fair

(Hey there everyone, this chapter is one out of the two chapters written by guest authors! And also the first chapter of Volume 3.5 If you do like this story, then you can check more stories by the author on wattpad. I have provided their profile link in the comment section.) Even though I have one story with only a prologue...

Ayanokouji POV

Present Day

Two consecutive special exams have concluded the first semester. The student body has received a well earned one week summer vacation.

While it might be a special event for most, the absence of daily classes just makes it mundane for me.

School authorities have given us a generous vacation. Although, that isn't the generous part. The generous part is the book fair they're holding that is running parallel with a cosplay event.

Usually, the school just orders a certain amount of books per month, sells them for a bit, and then places them into the library for use. However, this time they decided to order a large number of books, light novels, mangas, some picture books, and anything else that would be at a book fair. I did not understand why they would decide to order picture books since everyone here had to be able to read. (A/N Hehehe, they're for people like Ike before Y2Y3)

Three Days Prior

While on the cruise ship, they handed us pamphlets on what to expect with our free week. A subtopic was the selection of books that were being presented to us at the book fair event.

(A/N I just realized that this entire beginning part wasn't a part of my notes. More words and a better foundation is fine I guess)

This gave me an opportunity to explore the selection of books the school was offering as well as get myself involved in literature so I could grow the collection of books I have read.

I had only skimmed through the pamphlet so I could get a general idea of what was going on and decided to read the rest when I got to my dorm room.

As I approached the first-year dorms, I saw there was a large mob of students crowding the elevator so I just took the stairs. (A/N lazy bums... not really, they just got back from an exam but I wanted to say that) I'm not surprised. After all, we had just completed the second special exam that was backed up by the island special exam. The build-up, along with the release of stress and fatigue is reasonable.

I made it to my floor and entered my room. Everything was where it was supposed to be and I put away all of the belongings I had brought with me, which wasn't a lot. I was tired so I laid down on the bed and took the pamphlet with me. I just noticed that the pamphlet they gave was not the size of a normal one, it was extremely thick and could be compared to a small book. (A/N That is what a pamphlet is to a certain extent)

I went on the inside cover and saw the listings for the events and their respective information.

Contents...

Start of The Week Only: Sleepless Night Book Fair

Schedule

Books (A/N I have no idea how to describe normal books. Basically, paperbacks and hardcovers. Those kinds.)

Light Novels

Manga

Comics (A/N Yes. Comics can be compared to manga but I don't think they are the same, so they should have different sections)

Contest

Promotional Merchandise

Entire Week: Cosplay Event

The contents, of course, cover the overall ideas of what one should expect. I flipped towards the schedule that the book fair will follow. It would be good to know when it starts and how long it lasts.

Schedule

Begins - 10:00 am

Ends - 8:00 pm

Lasts four days

Today is three days before the event and it's open for ten hours per day, for four days. I would be able to plan out a mini routine to be able to get everything I want.

I already know what the different sections of books were going to be about so I decided to focus on the contest part of the pamphlet. There seems to be a prize mentioned here, supposedly it would be something related to books. However, this school isn't normal so I wonder if they're going to add in some bonus points. If so, Horikita's participation is expected.

Contest - Bonk With Books(A/N Battle of The Books sounds plain, because it is, as a name)

(A/N I have no idea for a title so I just put that since bonk is funny)

The book fair will be hosting an event that visitors can partake in

The contest will begin one hour after the book fair opens

It will be an individual event

The event will cover books from a variety of genres and types

Two types of questions will be asked of each participant:

What book the detail is from

What a specific detail was about

The contestant that answers the most question right will win the prize

The books used for the contest will be mentioned at the event.

The prize will be mentioned at the event

The contest will only happen on the first day of the book fair

Cheating is naturally prohibited and will invoke a penalty (A/N I'm not sure how someone would cheat in this)

The amount of information given prior to the actual contest is minimal. Most likely to prevent non-book lovers from reading the books and participating out of need. It is after all a book fair, so it has to be enjoyable and not strictly competitive. If I were to participate, I wouldn't do bad but I would certainly not get first place. The sole reason being the lack of my knowledge when it comes to genres like light novels and Mangas.

The content of the book fair event was fairly simple. To win, all someone had to do was get the most questions right. There was no way to do anything behind the scenes. It's not like I was going to do anything, I'm just a normal bookworm that has a chance at winning the mystery prize.

With nothing else important enough to go over, I put the pamphlet away and succumbed to my exhaustion.

Present

While thinking over what I was going to do today, I remembered that I wanted to go to the book fair with someone but that possibility was very unlikely. This was because of the cosplay event that was going on. And to others, it was indeed more interesting than attending an event about books. I considered inviting Horikita to join me since she is also an avid reader like me but I scrapped that idea, knowing that Horikita would never consider my invitation, unless for special exam strategies. In fact, I can solidly assume my presence bothers hers. With no one to accompany me to the book fair, I set off on my own.

I arrived at Keyaki Mall and headed towards where the book fair was located. From what I remember, this particular location was empty every time I passed it on my earlier visits. As I was about to enter, I noticed a sign placed in one of the display windows.

It read:

Quote of the day:

"Sticks and stones are hard on bones,

Aimed with angry art,

Words can sting like anything,

But silence breaks the heart"

- Phyllis McGinley

(A/N This is a poem but I am not sure what format I'm supposed to put it in)

The quote is interesting, but it's just that, a quote. I didn't give it any more thought.

"Hello, and welcome to the Sleepless Night Book Fair!" an employee excitedly greeted me.

"Hello."

"Will you be attending the contest that's held in about an hour?" he asked.

"Yeah," I replied.

"Great." He handed me a piece of paper that outlined what to expect. "Take this handout and prepare yourself to compete while browsing our selection of books. Enjoy!"

Prizes

1st - Two Free Books

Participation - Book Discount

The paper mainly outlined what the prizes were, there was nothing as to what books would be used. The contest offered a prize for first place, which was to have two books free, and every participant would get a discount on the books they bought.

I began walking towards the mystery section of the fair. I wanted to grab some of the books I have read before so I could re-read them.

There weren't a lot of people inside like I expected.

"They must really like cosplay," I muttered.

Ignoring the tastes the other students had, I arrived at the mystery section and began grabbing books by Agatha Christie. I had about a third of the books before I realized that I should maybe grab a bag to carry the books.

I turned around and was about to look for a bag if it weren't for the silver-haired girl. I believe her name was Shiina Hiyori from Class C. I knew her name from the zodiac exam on the cruise ship. She was in the same group as me, the Dragon group. I had exposed her as the VIP of my group. Wait, that's not important right now. When I turned around, I was going a little fast so I didn't have time to notice her standing there. I bumped into her and she was clearly going to fall over. The books I was carrying were also going to topple over.

Attempt to charmingly catch a girl before she falls or grab the falling books. I wonder which one would be better. It wasn't a very hard choice.

I went for the books. (A/N This is a joke so you can ignore this)

I reached over to the girl and caught her. I pulled her into an awkward one-arm hug to make sure she wouldn't fall over again. Some of my books surprisingly didn't fall off. Although, most of the books the girl was carrying did fall to the floor, except the one she was holding against her chest. Luckily, she had common sense and had them in a bag, so they didn't end up sprawled across the floor. I glanced at the bag and noticed she had a variety of books, mostly focusing on myst–

"Eto... could you let go of me?"

Had I forgotten about her? Was her presence that non-existent? Or was I feeling so comfortable in that weird hug that I lost focus?

"Yeah sure." I gently let go of her so she wouldn't fall again.

"Thank you for stopping my fall, Ayanokouji-kun."

So she does remember my name huh? I wouldn't expect anything else from a student that was placed in a group full of leaders.

"You don't have to thank me, Shiina. I should be apologizing for bumping into you. I'm sorry for doing so."

"No no, it's fine."

"Okay." I proceed to pick up the books I dropped. I think Shiina took some interest in what I was getting. When I had picked up all of the books, she looked at me with sparkles in her eyes.

"Were you perhaps stocking up on Christie's works so you could read them in one sitting?" she inquired.

"Well, I already read all of the novels by Christie. I was just grabbing them so I could re-read them at a later date."

"Are you going to look for other mystery novels?" she asked. "If so I can offer you a few recommendations that might interest you."

"I am indeed looking for other books, so if you could offer some recommendations I would very much appreciate it."

Those words were like a magic spell freeing her from unseen shackles. She immediately began going down aisles and grabbing books off of the shelves. I followed her and without any second thought she gave me more and more books to carry.

I already had a lot of books on me, but she increased the pile until I couldn't see her face anymore through the wall of books. What little confidence I had in my strength, was about to be humbled by the increasing pile of books. "Shiina, could you wait a minute while I go grab a bag to carry my books?" (A/N From what I remember from going to a bookstore, I don't remember anything about book fairs, they would put the books in paper bags if there were a few of them. I have no idea if they use other bags)

"Oh, I apologize for not noticing your struggle, Ayanokouji-kun."

I went and asked an employee for a bag to carry the books but they ended up giving me a box. They said it had something to do with the number of books I was carrying and that a bag wouldn't fit all of them. They're not wrong, about sixty or so books would definitely not fit in a paper bag. And those were only the ones by Christie. If I were to purchase every recommendation Shiina has to offer, then I would need quite a few more boxes. I let them know and they gave me more boxes. This should be enough. The staff grinned at each other amiably looking at my collection of books. One student purchasing a ton of books must be an everyday event for them right?... Right?

(A/N I have no idea how many points Kiyotaka has. I don't remember Papakouji mentioning it at all in his chapters. I also don't know the price range for books so I'm trying my best here to be fair at the checkout when it happens)

I went back to Shiina with boxes in tow. They are heavier than I expected them to be. Now that I am a little comfortable, I wonder why she is maintaining contact with me, if anyone else looks at two students of different classes meeting like this it would raise suspicion. On top of that both of us are seemingly loners, our contact would raise more eyebrows.

But when I look at her, that is the last thing she would be worried about. She was immersed in this sea of books and had lost herself to it.

"Here." I gave her a box. "Put all the books you want me to read in this box. It'll make it easier to carry."

We spent the entire hour scouring for books that I would be interested in. By we, I mean Shiina. She didn't exactly ask me to follow her but rather I decided to follow her out of curiosity. Leading me to the few aisles that were marked with the mystery genre. I thought it was adorable how Shiina beamed whenever she found a book to offer to me. It was similar to a child running around and saying "oo a piece of candy". (A/N I imagined a chibi Hiyori running around grabbing books. It was a great thing to imagine. I believe there was a chibi Hiyori fanart that I liked. Let me get that)

(A/N LOOK AT THE CHIBI HIYORI. Now just imagine this version running around with books. Credit to the original artist)

"To everyone attending the book fair." A message was played over the speakers. "The contest, Bonk With Books, will start in 5 minutes. If you intend to participate, please head over to the lounge area. Thank you."

"Are you going to participate in the contest Ayanokouji-kun?" asked Shiina.

"I intend to. I'm assuming you will too?"

"It would not hurt if I did." We headed towards the lounge.

Speaking of the contest, I think Shiina wanted to come here because of her interest in books. However, Ryuuen most likely had a say in this as well. The prize of the contest was unknown. This is the only thing that would attract people away from the cosplay event. That was what I thought, but seemingly cosplay events have attracted people away from it. Ryuuen most likely told Shiina to figure out what the prize is and to win it.

We also haven't been told what books this contest will cover, but I can assume that Shiina will be a formidable opponent. Her love for books is extraordinary. Even though her main focus seems to be on the mystery genre, I have no doubt she has read other genres as well.

When we arrived at the lounge, an employee–who I assume was the host–told us to sign in on a form. I filled in the form, which only asked us for our student ID and a nickname, and handed it over to the host.

I scouted out the rest of the competition. I saw Shiina finishing up her form as well. She noticed me and waved with a smile. Her smile had a different aura to it, combined with her innocence it feels angelic.

I noticed some students with rather dull expressions; I wonder if this is what society refers to as a nerd, I'm curious (A/N Watashi, kininairamsu) if my dull expression makes me a nerd as well. But, Shiina doesn't have the dull expression, rather I haven't seen anyone so enthusiastic about discovering books.

I instantly noticed Horikita preparing herself for the competition. Amidst the rest of the participants, I recognized one of them to be a classmate whose name was Yukimura. I noticed he was a man of study, so I thought he wouldn't participate in an event that would cover materials that were more based on entertainment. He seemed impatient. He kept on bouncing his leg on the floor, waiting for it to begin. Katsuragi was also here; after all he, like Yukimura, is a man of study. There were also some other students from Class A and Class B but I didn't recognize them. However, I did notice Kanzaki was participating in this. A cosplay event doesn't seem like something he would go to. It seemed Shiina was the only one participating in Class C. In total, there were only ten participants including me. A sad turn out for an event.

"Bonk With Books will now begin!" Announced the host. "Every participant will be able to answer the questions. You will be given a tablet and a stylist to write down your answers. Answer the question in the blank space that follows. You will be given a total of 9 minutes to answer the questions. Once the timer goes off, your answers will automatically be sent to us. You cannot lose points for giving the incorrect answer. The winner will be the participant with the most points at the end."

"Now for the books that are going to be the main attraction. They are: Monument 14, Cress, Hell Divers, Supernova, Ao No Exorcist, Love is War and, Michael Vey: Fall of Hades." (A/N I am not looking up the actual name for Love is War. Too much work)

Everyone was being attentive to the words the host said. The silence was one of respect towards the books.

(A/N This is almost guaranteed to be the most words I have typed in the shortest period of time. It doesn't feel great. I do find it entertaining I guess)

Also, most–if not all–of these books do not contain the mystery genre. This is looking pretty bad for me. Maybe for Shiina as well. I didn't get to read a lot of books based on different genres. And the ones I have read mostly dated back into the 20th century for the most part. Shiina has most likely read books that weren't mystery focused so this might be okay for her. Those books aren't the main issue though. The larger obstacles are the mangas that are in here. I have not seen a manga. I never got the opportunity to read one. I might have to pick it up to see what they're about but this puts me at a slight disadvantage for both of them.

Hypothetically speaking, if each book has the same number of questions and are worth the same number of points, then not knowing about two topics wouldn't hurt my overall score. Well, there's the option of guessing but I don't have enough knowledge to make an inference that could potentially result in a correct answer. However, it isn't just two that I don't–

"Alright. Everyone has their tablets ready?!"

"Then... Begin!" Announced the host while slamming a book closed.

Time Skip-aroo

Shiina POV

We were almost done grabbing books for the day. I think I went a bit overboard with my recommendations, but Ayanokouji-kun doesn't seem to mind. Although, he hasn't changed his expression for the entire time, not even during the book event. He didn't seem surprised at the book titles. Did he perhaps know all of them? That would be surprising.

"Ne Ayanokouji-kun, what did you think of the event?"

"What I think about the event..."

"Well, I only knew a few of the books and that amounted to a small amount of correct answers. The one I was one hundred percent sure on was Monument 14. Other than that I was a fish suffocating on land. How about you, Shiina?"

"Hm... I've been trying to read as many books as possible for a good portion of my life. Some of those books were recent and others were from a long thread into the past. Remembering all the small details someone else may deem insignificant is quite valuable. However, I am quite surprised no one surpassed me in answering questions correctly."

"Logically speaking, it's inferable that no other participant would have read those books meant for leisure."

"And before I forget," He stands still and I stop with him, "Congratulations on winning the event today Shiina."

"Oh, thank you Ayanokouji-kun."

"No problem."

"Are you going to purchase the books I recommended?" I looked at him curiously.

"If I can afford them then yes. And when I have the chance to, I'll offer some that might interest you. I will go purchase these now. Are you going to stay here?"

"Yes! There's still a lot of books I want to go around and find. Who knows what kind of buried treasure might lie in this sea of books. See you later Ayanokouji-kun and thank you for accompanying me." I bowed to show my gratitude.

"No problem. Farewell." With that, Ayanokouji-kun walked off to buy the books and I kept wandering around, taking interest in anything and everything.

Time Skip-aroo

Today was quite unexpected. I'm not disappointed, on the contrary, it was so splendid; I want to experience it another time, another where. I made a friend with Ayano–

I should refrain from acknowledging him as a friend when he hasn't mentioned anything about it. But if so, then how does one make friends? We spent time together today even if it was for less than twenty-four hours and for the first time.

I can honestly say that I enjoyed our time together. This is a first for me so I'm not sure if friendship has its own feeling connected to it. I thought it was simply happiness. Maybe it's more complex than I originally believed it was.

Ah. I think someone would consider this excitement. Yes. I am excited to have someone that loves books just as much as I do. I cannot wait until we meet again. Ayanokouji-kun mentioned telling me about some books. I'm sure it'll be exponentially more fun than today. (A/N Oi, I know this sounds rather sus but it really is just excitement. If you have a problem with it, take it up with the board)

THE END...or is it?

Thoughts

Hello, Warper here. So I really wanted to add questions related to the contest but it felt tedious so I didn't include it. However, I did want to include the short snippet to read Monument 14. It's a trilogy but I only ask that you read Monument 14–the first book of the trilogy–because I really want to make a one shot or an actual fanfic based on that book. Yes. Monument 14 is an actual book.

I have no idea if I did decent on this.

Thanks Papakouji for this.

Dressing up!

(This chapter is the second and last chapter by our guest author. Shissou! Yes he is the guy who started this fanfic and wrote first 4 chapters in it, also my mentor in my early days. He has taught me a lot and I am really thankful to him. Hope you enjoy it!)

(Ichinose Honami's POV)

After going out to get something to eat, I immediately went back to the dorms. Our holidays have just started, but I felt like spending the rest of my day at home for now.

I took out my phone just to peek at the time.

It's still early in the afternoon, hovering around 1:00 PM.

I got on the elevator and pushed the button leading to my room's floor. Shortly, the carriage lifted me up.

A faint ding! rang inside the carriage, and the elevator doors opened soon after.

I took out my room's keycard and used it to open my door.

At least...I tried to.

Expecting the door to open right after I turned the knob, I pushed my body forward.

Thud.

"Ow...Eh?"

However, the door didn't budge, so I ended up kissing it instead while bumping my head.

I tried swiping the card again...and again...I tried it again a few more times, but it showed no signs of welcoming me inside.

At that point, I called the dorm's custodian.

"Ah. I remember this room. A certain 3rd-year student used to stay here. I'm pretty sure she graduated already, but she always brewed trouble. The lock probably broke when the door was slammed too hard."

"I see. But I've been staying here for quite some time now. Why did it only break now?"

"I'm not sure. You seem to be a gentle lady. Perhaps until now, you closed the door as if you were caressing a cat."

"Haha. I doubt it. But anyway, could you fix it?"

I looked at the custodian, but he seems a bit doubtful. Am I locked outside forever?

"I'll open the door for now. This was really unexpected, so I'll have to prepare a few supplies for me to fix it. If you can, just keep the door open until I get back. That'll be in 2-3 hours."

That's pretty long...I have to keep the door open for 2-3 whole hours?

"Hmmm...Can't I just close it until you get back?"

"I don't think so. If ever there's an emergency and you have to leave the room immediately, what would you do?"

"Right..."

"Right, so it might be inconvenient, but it's safer that way."

The custodian worked at the door for about 3 minutes. Shortly after, it opened.

Click.

"Wow, it opened. Thank you."

"I'll be back. Keep the door open for now."

"Okay."

After one last reminder, he left.

"This is a bit troublesome."

Now that I can finally go inside my room, I went straight in. I made sure not to lock myself in, so I kept the door wide open, letting the air, the sunlight, anything, inside.

Feeling a bit tired, I sat down on the edge of my bed. The gentle softness caressed my lower back.

I looked at the open door one last time before letting out a sigh.

Soon, my phone vibrated. I got a message from Horikita-san.

«Have you talked to Ayanokouji-kun yet?»

Oh! I completely forgot.

«Sorry. No, I haven't. I'll call him»

«Ok»

I was supposed to talk to Ayanokouji-kun about the results of the cruise ship exam. Although I was a bit nervous, he's still my classmate, and perhaps, a friend.

After a few taps and swipes, my phone rang. Shortly after, it connected to the person on the other side.

"Ichinose?"

"Good afternoon, Ayanokouji-kun."

"Good afternoon..."

As dead as ever, I see.

"Uhmm...Are you free at the moment?"

"Yes. Why?"

"Okay. Could you meet me in my room in about 30 minutes? I have something to talk to you about. It's regarding the recent special exam."

"Uh...Sure. I'll see you there."

"Alright, thanks."

The call ended right after.

Ayanokouji-kun sounded a bit confused. I mean, it was a sudden call asking him to go to a girl's room./ Although it's about school, it must've been weird for him still.

Anyways, I should get ready. I still have to prepare the--

"Ichinose-san! Heyo!"

A loud and familiar voice resounded inside my room. I turned towards the door and was met with the sight of two of my classmates looking confused.

"Eh? Mii-chan? Sato-san?"

"Why is your door wide open? Waiting for a boy to randomly take notice of it and enter? Hehe, too bad, we're the first ones."

Sato-san joked about the reason for the open door. Mii-chan, on the other hand, welcomed herself in.

"Don't shut the door, okay? It's broken at the moment, so we'll get locked in if you close it."

"Ah...I see. I see."

"What brings you two here?"

"You see, Ichinose-san...Check this out:"

Mii-chan held a paper bag right in front of me, offering it. Sato-san was carrying a few more paper bags just like it.

I received it, and immediately after holding it, I knew what was inside."

"Clothes?"

"Yes! There was a cosplaying event at Keyaki Mall earlier. Maya and I joined, and it was fun. They gave us the clothes as rewards for participating."

"I took pictures."

"Mhm. Mhm."

I have a bad feeling about this.

"Er...What does that have to do with me?"

"We didn't know what to do with the clothes. After all, the event's already done, and these are not the type of clothes you wear casually. So, Maya has this great idea of having you wear them. We thought you would look amazing."

I knew it. I've already prepared my counterattacks.

"I don't think the clothes would match my siz--"

"Don't worry! They also let us choose clothes in different sizes to take home with us. We chose this one while thinking of you:"

Sato-san took out a set of soft fabric. The only colors present were black and white. The one thing that comes to mind would be...

"See? A maid outfit!"

"Eh?!?"

Sato-san held it against my body, seeing how it would like if I wore it.

"It looks great on you."

I haven't even put it on...Wait, no. I'm not putting in on.

"I don't think this is a good idea."

"We'll wear ones too, so there's no reason for you to be shy."

"The door's wide open."

This was my trump card, my last chance of getting them to leave. Ayanokouji-kun should come here soon. I can't have him see this scene.

"Mmmm...You're right. But this is the girls' floor. The boys wouldn't roam around here."

"Come on, Ichinose-san. We're dying to see you in these. We'll leave right away after a few pictures."

"Yes, yes. Just a few pictures," Mii-chan followed right after.

Ahhh...If that's the only way to make them leave, fine. I have to be fast. Otherwise, Ayanokouji-kun might catch a glimpse of this. I would die of embarrassment!

"Fine. After this, you swear to leave right away? And no pictures too."

"No pictures? That's not fair..."

I directed Sato-san a pout.

"Fine..."

After that, I took the clothes and went inside the bathroom.

Slowly, I removed my skirt and unbuttoned my shirt. I put them inside the paper bag and took the main outfit. After a few minutes, I was done changing.

Even though I was extremely embarrassed, I couldn't bear to not take a peek at a mirror and see how I looked.

What I saw was a strawberry-blonde haired young girl in a black and white dress. Immediately after seeing myself, warmth rushed towards my cheeks. The girl inside the mirror blushed intensely.

Ahhhhh...Why do I have to do this?

I left the bathroom with a chunk of dignity taken away from me. I was prepared to die of embarrassment as Mii-chan and Sato-san stared at me with hearts for eyes.

"Ichinose-san! You look so cute!

"Don't do it!"

Before they could even reach out for their phones, I stopped them.

"No pictures."

"Ahhhh...In that case, let me burn this sight into my eyes."

"Can I take it off now?"

"Nonono. That's way too fast."

"Maya, didn't you say that you'll wear one too if Ichinose-san put it on?"

"Hey, that includes you too. But yes, I'll do it."

This will just prolong this. Ayanokouji-kun could enter that door at any minute now, especially with it being wide open.

"Nono, it's fine. You guys don't have to cosplay too. You can leave."

Pleaseeeee...

"We have to be fair, though, Ichinose-san. Don't worry. I'm sure you'll still be the cutest after we put it on. Now, I'll use the bathroom first. Hold on."

Sato-san took another set of clothes and headed straight towards my bathroom. While I was out here, blushing like an apple.

Mii-chan looked at me with a bit of pity. She was the one who brought up the clothes, after all. However, excitement took over her guilt as she stared at me with sparkling eyes.

"Ichinose-san, you're adorable!"

This isn't the right time to say, "Thank you."

"I'm back!"

Just then, Sato-san appeared from the bathroom wearing another set maid outfit. I stared at her for a few moments. She looked beautiful.

"Welp. It's my turn," Mii-chan said as she took another paper back into the bathroom.

In the meantime, Sato-san talked to me.

"Do you still not want to take pictures? We look really cute right now!"

"Haha...No, thanks."

"Hmmph."

I can't believe this is happening.

I reached for my phone to check the time. It's been 23 minutes since I called Ayanokouji-kun. Mii-chan and Sato-san have to leave, like, right now!

"I'm done!"

"Hey! You look adorable as well. Now we're all matching! We should take pictures."

"No," I said for the nth time.

"Then, would you want to try out different clothes, Ichinose-san? We have others."

"Didn't you guys say you were going to leave real soon?"

"But you're just too cute!"

"Stop saying that..."

I could feel my cheeks burning up again. As if it wasn't burning enough this entire time.

"If you don't leave soon-"

"Ichinose?"

As a familiar voice entered the room, my heart skipped a heartbeat.

Ayanokouji-kun is here.

"Uh...What's happening here?"

"Eh, Ayanokouji-kun, what are you doing here?? Sato-san was the first one to ask. Not even minding that she's seen cosplaying.

"I was cal-"

"Did you see the door open and got worried? Sorry about that," I cut him off. It might cause some misunderstandings, and they shouldn't know that Ayanokouji-kun has been involved with the special exams.

"Yes," Ayanokouji-kun stepped inside.

"Is everything okay? Why are you all dressed as maids."

"Don't worry about it-"

"Anyways, Ayanokouji-kun. Isn't Ichinose-san like the cutest right now?"

No, stop. I will faint.

"Uh?"

"Yeah, take a closer look. Come inside."

"Hey, stop it!"

Sato-san and Mii-chan let out giggles as I suffered. Ayanokouji-kun, on the other hand, simply stared at us with his usual indifferent expression. He must be weirded out right now.

I let out a sigh, ignoring my embarrassment. I asked Ayanokouji-kun to meet up with me because we had something important to talk about. Now, I'm just wasting his time. The least I can do is give him coffee or something.

"Sorry for the trouble, Ayanokouji-kun. Do you want coffee?"

"I don't mind, but the situation's a bit embarrassing. I feel like I came at the wrong time."

"Don't worry, Ayanokouji-kun. Actually, we could use your help. Can you convince Ichinose-san to take pictures with us?"

Nooo.

"Uhh...Probably not."

"Well, come inside first."

"...Okay."

Filled with confusion, Ayanokouji-kun stepped inside. He has not the slightest clue of what's going on.

He closed the door behind him, making a faint click.

Wait.

I looked at Ayanokouji-kun with horror. He immediately noticed and tried to understand what he did wrong. He turned the knob again, and to his surprise, it didn't open.

"Oh."

"Ayanokouji-kun is an idiot, huh," Sato-san let out a pretty harsh remark.

"I'm sorry. So that's why you left it open."

"Well, how'd you open it, Ichinose-san?"

"I asked the custodian downstairs. He said he was gonna come back in 2 hours."

"So, we're stuck here until then?" Mii-chan raised the flag.

"We forgot to remind Ayanokouji-kun."

With all the fuss happening, even I'm not surprised.

"Well, well. Let's use this opportunity to take pictures, then. With the door closed, there's nothing stopping you, Ichinose-san."

I looked at Ayanokouji-kun, asking, no, begging for helping.

"I don't think she's comfortable with me around."

"Hmmm...What if we make Ayanokouji-kun wear some clothes too?"

"Huh?"

Mii-chan liked the idea, and so, she followed up, "Oh, that's right! There's still another set right here. Ayanokouji-kun could use it."

"Wait, I don't remember agreeing to this."

"Tsk tsk, Ayanokouji-kun. You closed the door, locking us in. This is your punishment. Plus, don't you like the idea of being the only boy to witness Ichinose-san wearing a maid outfit? In a way, this is your payment."

"Ayanokouji-kun's pretty handsome too if you look close enough. I'm sure it would look good on you."

Ahhh!!! What is happening?!

"Now, now. It isn't Ayanokouji-kun's fault that we got locked in. We forgot to remind him because we've been fooling around. So please, don't force the maid outfit onto him."

"Hmmm...fine. Then, since we won't force Ayanokouji-kun to cosplay, Ichinose-san's going to take pictures with us. Here, Ayanokouji-kun, take my phone and snap some lovely photos."

"Wait a minute, no."

I looked at Ayanokouji-kun, who seems to be worried.

"I'm sorry, Ichinose."

Well, it's our fault that Ayanokouji-kun fell into this predicament. It would be cruel to save myself while Ayanokouji-kun suffers 10 times worse than just a few photos.

Even so, the blood rushing towards my cheeks made me dizzy. I was blushing so much.

Click. Click.

Ayanokouji-kun took the photos Sato-san asked for. With that, I'm free.

"Thank you, Ayanokouji-kun."

Shortly, Ayanokouji-kun took out his own phone. He swiped left, right, up, down, and tapped numerous times on the screen. He's texting.

"I'm kinda bummed out that we couldn't see Ayanokouji-kun in a maid outfit. Oh well," Sato-san sighed.

"I mean, I wouldn't let Ayanokouji-kun use my bathroom..."

"Ichinose-san...I didn't know you were that sadistic. You would've had Ayanokouji-kun strip right in front of us to save his life?"

"What? Nonono. It just means that he won't be going anywhere near that maid outfit."

"Well, I asked Horikita for help. She should get the custodian to open the door for us."

"Uhh...The custodian won't be coming here any time soon. I already asked him to fix the door, and he said he'll be back in 2 hours to get the materials needed."

"Ah..."

"Ahem. That's why...you should enjoy the time we have together in the meantime. Cosplay with us," Sato-san could not drop the ball.

"For me, it would be cross-dressing. I'm not interested."

"Would you cosplay if it's male clothes, then?"

"I don't see the need to, so probably not."

"Dammit, Ayanokouji-kun, you're no fun," Sato-san pouted in disappointment.

"You asked Horikita-san for help?" Mii-chan raised a question.

"Yes."

"How? You texted her?" Sato-san seemed to have taken an interest.

"Yes."

"Has she replied yet?"

"She has. She said she'll see what she can do."

Mii-chan and Sato-san stared at Ayanokouji-kun with sparkling eyes. Maybe the idea of Horikita-san and Ayanokouji-kun texting each other caught their attention. Well, in any case, this might be uncomfortable for him.

"Hey, hey. Are you two like dating?"

"No, we're not," "No, they're not,"

Ayanokouji-kun and I said almost at the same time.

"Oh my, Ichinose-san, how are you so sure?"

Without even realizing it, I put myself in a vulnerable position for a misunderstanding. Aghhhh...whyyy?

"I asked Ayanokouji-kun before. Just like you girls, I was curious too."

"I see. Why not, though? They seem to always be together, and Horikita-san only talks to Ayanokouji-kun and barely to Ichinose-san."

Sato-san crossed her arms together and placed her right hand on her chin, still wearing that embarrassing maid outfit.

On the other hand, Mii-chan kept quiet and listened to the conversation with all ears.

Between the silence, the doorbell rang. It must be the custodian. He's earlier than expected.

"Miss, I'll be opening and fixing the door now. I'm not sure why you closed it, but hopefully all is good on the other side."

"Thank you very much!"

Shortly after, the door opened, and everyone was free. Sato-san, Mii-chan, and I were still wearing our maid outfits, but I couldn't care anymore at this point.

"There you go."

"Thank you. Oh, Horikita-san."

The person standing next to the custodian was Horikita-san, the person Ayanokouji-kun called for help.

"Hello, Horikita-san!" Mii-chan sent her greetings.

"Why are Sato-san and Wang-san here? And in maid outfits too?"

"Haha...Don't worry about that," I turned towards Mii-chan and Sato-san, "You guys should probably get changed now."

"Okie!"

"Thanks, Horikita."

"I'll be leaving now. Ichinose-san, don't forget."

"Yes..."

"Seems like you lovely girls had fun locked in. However, you shouldn't have let a boy in, no matter how handsome he might be. I'll be fixing the lock now."

"Sorry for the trouble."

After all of that, Sato-san and Mii-chan left with the maid outfits. It got pretty late, so I sent Ayanokouji-kun back to his room too. It seemed like he was tired. Thankfully, the door got fixed.

Buzz...

My phone vibrated on the side of my bed. I checked to see a message from Sato-san...

It was an image file, a photo.

When I opened it, it showed Sato-san, Mii-chan, and I together, of course...in maid outfits. I zoomed in to see myself in it, the image had an edited background to it thankfully.

And to think Ayanokouji-kun was the one to take this...

My cheeks started to heat up again.

Ahhhhhhhhhh!!

(You can find one more one shot by him here:https/m./u/14218572/LynnRaynare)

(I made the fanart ofc)

Chasing the shadows

Chasing the shadow (Honami's POV)

(A/N: Just a reminder these all chapters of 3.5 are happening in the semester break the students got.)

Out of many things I learned in the first semester, one of them highlights my physical limits.

On the island, I was leading the search crew looking for the spots. At that time more than a help I was a burden on the team, both Ayanokouji-kun and Horikita-san possessed seemingly never ending stamina.

Even when I was dropping dead from exhaustion, those two were completely fine. I was confident in my running but now I know that I must improve myself further, so that I am never a burden again.

On cruise ships I used to do steady treadmill runs, but once I was back to school I started studying about athletics and the ways to improve it.

After studying it for a few hours I deduced that in order to improve athletics; progressive overload is going to be the key. I must increase the stress on my body and gradually adapt to it in order to enhance my performance.

Nods cheerfully

That is how I decided on my routine to go on a three miles run every morning before sunrise.

It was the second day. After waking up I changed to my jersey and left my room. It was 5:00 AM in the morning.

The faint light of the sun began to appear and the cloudless sky was slowly waking up. The sound of this world is peaceful during these times.

I walked across the corridor and reached the elevator, there I found someone familiar.

"Horikita-san!" I whispered enthusiastically. She was also dressed in a jersey, we both might've same goal.

We both went into the elevator and stood beside each other.

"Why are you up so early in the morning?" She asked.

"Out for a jog, what about you?"

"Same."
"Oh then let's jog-"
"Don't think about that."
"Eh .. . why?"
"You will just slow me down."

"Hmm, that is true." I will follow along anyways, looking at her I can get a grasp at how much I still need to progress.

Both of us got off the elevator, we made our way through the lobby out to the campus. Except for a few workers the campus was almost empty.

As we strolled towards the park silently , Horikita jogged slowly. I did the same. By the time we reached the park we were warmed up.

It was a square shaped park with each side of nearly 200 metres. Once the actual training started she picked up the pace and left me behind. I think I could catch up to the pace she is running if I go faster.

But, neither of us were running at top speed. As I have read, if you want to run for a longer period of time then you shouldn't pick up your top speed too soon, it is better to operate at your comfortable pace.

This fact made me realize her comfortable pace is faster than mine. By the time I started my second round Horikita had already crossed me once, after the second round I started slowing down. It was getting hard to breathe, more like it hurt in my chest with every breath.

I slowed down and started walking but Horikita kept running. Everytime crossed me I thought I would say (On your left!)
'Do your best Horikita-san!'

But I can guess she would lose focus if I did something like that. So I just sipped some water and sat on the nearby bench once I was done with my share of three miles.

To my surprise Horikita-san still continued, not only was her speed better than mine but she could maintain that speed for a longer time.

Once she was done she came back and sat beside me.

"Horikita-san your athletic abilities are truly splendid, no wonder you didn't get tired on the island."
"Hmm."
Well, out of all people she seems to be least fascinated by her abilities. Perhaps she is also chasing a goal.

We walked back to the dormitories.

This continued for the coming days.

Horikita's time and speed were mostly fixed while my speed increased little by little alongside my time. After all, it is easier to progress in the beginning phases.

Everyday I tried sprinting at my top speed once or twice for a few seconds. It did hurt in the beginning but soon my body adapted,

"I won't be coming to run tomorrow." Horikita-san said one day after we're done running.

"Huh, not feeling well?" I asked out of concern.

"No, I will be waking up and running earlier tomorrow. So I don't think you would make it anytime near that."
"You don't plan to run in the dark right?"
The guards might start chasing you out of suspicion.

"Four in the morning."
"Oh, that is good. I think I can also wake up at that time for one day."
"Do as you wish."

"Any particular reason for it?"
"Yes, I want to challenge myself."
"I see." I will not ask what this challenge is about and rather see it tomorrow.

The next morning I woke up at 3:40 and by four I was waiting for Horikita-san near the elevator.

It was still dark and the street lights were still on. Given the schedule of a student this time isn't exactly healthy for doing fasted cardio.

Once we were out of the lobby she started warming up on the cemented pathway. Without asking her anything I followed her lead and warmed myself up.

Weren't we going to go to the park?

(A/N: So the above pic should give an idea, it's dark and they are gonna run around the dormitory building now since they cover more length than smol parks.)
Just as we were warming up on one side of the broad pathway, I noticed someone on the other side of the pathway running.

"That." Horikita said suddenly looking at the silhouette which was far from us now.

"Hm?"
"That is my challenge." I turned my head swiftly and found the person running had already disappeared into the shadows.

"Who was that?"
"I don't know, I might have an idea. But it doesn't matter, I must catch up to them."

(A/N: She thinks it might be Manabu.)

The runner appeared again, in this darkness I could barely see them. It is by the sound of footsteps that I sense a little of their presence. On spotting the target Horikita started sprinting, yes sprinting.

To think the person actually ran the whole round of dormitories at that speed, it is hard to even imagine such stamina and speed.

But without a second thought I also started running behind them, just like a child who is having a hard time catching up to their older friends.

One turn then to another the distance between me and both of them kept increasing. It was hopeless to catch up to them but I sprinted my heart out anyways.

After one round it felt like someone poured some acid into my lungs. I stopped and caught my breath, I looked into the distance to spot Horikita-san and her target.
Suddenly both of them appeared from behind. At this point Horikita-san was barely keeping up to the pace of this person, it was dark so I didn't actually know who was lagging behind but I assumed it to be Horikita-san judging from the loud breaths she was taking.

I shook my head after the speed I saw them running at. I started running in an anticlockwise direction, this way I would meet the runner face to face and hopefully get a glimpse of who they are.

We met earlier than I expected. I saw them running in a distance, Horikita was now getting slower. Both of them approached me and I approached them.

But. They suddenly changed the track and ran out from the field of street lights. All I could make was a black hoodie they were wearing.

With that Horikita-san stopped in front of me, gasping for air. Her face was red from running so long for so much.

I waited silently for a few minutes, and soon she caught her breath.

Her face had the expression which conveyed her defeat. Whoever the runner was, she wasn't able to catch them even once.

"That was really impressive, Horikita-san. This is the first time I have seen your peak performance."
"My peak performance is the play thing for someone. Just the thought of it makes me uneasy."
"That is true, whoever they were they are extremely gifte-"

I stopped dead in my tracks when she gave me an icy glare.

"It isn't about being gifted, it has a lot more to it, Ichinose."

She looked directly into my eyes.

"With enough discipline and diligence I can defeat them, I can feel that the distance between us isn't impossible."
She said with fire in her eyes. Slowly the golden rays of sun gave her face a bright colour to it, she was actually serious regarding this.

"I believe in you, someday you will be better than them." I nodded slightly and said.

".." Without any words she started walking.

Is this the passion that fuels her? Is this how one truly progresses in athletics?

In front of this burning sentiment, the concept of progressive overload sounds trivial.

Later that day Mii-chan had called me to the pallet cafeteria, on my way I saw Ayanokouji sitting on the bench beside the vending machine.

He was wearing a T-shirt and a sweatpant. But, then I saw a black hoodie kept beside him.

Haha, it isn't his. It can't be.

Then he got up and wore it.

!!!

Let's calm down, he might've a hoodie of the same colour, nothing else. It is just a coincidence, only a coincidence after all.

Coincidences can be freaky.

Tail

Tail (Ryuuen's POV)

I was strolling my way from the dorms to the Keyaki mall. Hashimoto, that fox had begged my audience this time. He expected me at the meeting place in the next five minutes, even though I can make it on time I won't.

Cruising around the mall for an hour or two before meeting actually sounds better, making people wait is my specialty and everyone loves it.

Roaming around I crossed the store named SIV CAMERA, this place was still unexplored by me. Inside I saw two girls with pink hairs with their backs facing towards me, looking at her ass I can tell one of them is Ichinose.

Whoever the other one is, the clerk ape is grinning crazy at her. Lust is dropping out of his eyes, only in my hometown have I seen these crazy people.

(A/N: Apparently you know who the second girl is, and how did Ichinose and the girl end up coming together? I will cover that part later so don't worry, flow with the story for now.)

In the cruise ship exam, someone figured out the VIP I was hiding. I can't expect that from Ichinose, it is too unrealistic to think someone would guess the correct name out of pure luck.

Leaving them be I left the store, Kanzaki has a better chance of finding VIP when compared to these chimps. Moving to the next floor I found yet another Class D guy.

This guy was also in the Dragon group, he didn't seem to possess any particular ability to be there. Perhaps, he is hiding his abilities. If that is true then there is a chance he might be the one who figured out the VIP I was hiding.

I distanced myself from him and started tailing him. Stalking your enemy and collecting sensitive information about them is the key to defeating strong foes.

But right now, this stalk is to confirm the threat.
In the next hour:

He went to the kitchenware store, I did the same in a few minutes. Buying a knife would make a fine addition to one's high school life.

He walked towards the section which had the most expensive and sharpest knife. A knife too sharp would backfire, it would be hard to conceal and give a fatal blow which one wouldn't want to deliver within the school premises.

. .. .. . .

What is he doing?

Moving past the knife section he entered the apron section and wore one with pink hue to it as a rose pattern highlighted the breast area. . .

I pulled myself behind and questioned my choices once again. Am I over reading into this guy?

I peeked again, this time he had changed into another one even more girlier. Pulling myself behind, I peeked again .. .

Another one. . Each time I peeked after a brief pause there was an even more abnormal apron on him.

At last he wore an apron that had words imprinted on it, I looked at the mirror and it read.

Coincidences can be-

(A/N: No Ryuuen, we have been using that line a lot lately.

Ryuuen: Like I care.)
Coincidences can be freaky.

He took a few steps back while facing the mirror and started walking towards it again. This baboon doesn't look like someone cunning, but just this much isn't enough to confirm it.

After the store he went outside, slowly he strolled towards the secluded park. At this point I have lost hope from this guy to be the one Kushida is hunting, it is hard to believe that Ichinose and Horikita would yield such results on the island.

Once he was in a place which wasn't much visible to the outside he took his stance. He lowered his torso, his thighs parallel to the floor and the back was arched.

I have seen this stance in my fights before, it comes naturally to many people.

After this he cupped his hands and drew them to his side, he concentrated for a moment then strongly thrusted them forward.

. . . .

This F*ker is mimicking kamehameha.

With my immeasurable disappointment I went back to Keyaki mall leaving the baboon behind.

By evening I was done talking to Hashimoto and walked back to the dorms. For a change of pace I took a different route that I used to, it was silent and dusk was approaching.

I walked on the pathway bathed in orange sunlight, just when I was going to turn about a corner I heard footsteps of someone running.

I tucked myself behind the wall, the footsteps came nearer and nearer.

A girl with pink hairs ran with all her might followed by a guy who's eyes said rape.

They both ran into an alley. I recognized this girl as the one who I saw with Ichinose in SIV CAMERA and the guy chasing her was none other than the clerk.

I walked towards the alley and took out my phone. I had a good idea what was brewing in there.

"I have always wanted to do it with you!!"
"Hahh noo!"
"Don't say that now, we were fated to be together!"

He started unbuttoning her uniform as she struggled under his heavy body. The girl appears to be meek, any other girl would've screamed her lungs out by now.

She slowly gave up hope as tears strolled down her cheeks, he removed her glasses.

"You look so beautiful like this!"

I have wondered what would happen if I beat a staff of this school to half death. To experiment on a teacher can be hazardous for me. But this non teaching staff is the best option I will ever get.

I closed my camera and my lips curled into a crazy grin.

I approached them as their backs faced me. He noticed me soon enough.

"W-Who are you?"

Too late to ask that old bones.

(A/N: This pic is just to get an idea of his position)

Before he could dismount himself I kicked him in the face. The pain it caused can be seen in his eyes, his legs lost strength and he fell on his butt.

With my hands still in my pockets I kicked him once again. His eyes filled with fear reflected my smiling face, this feeling of ecstasy is what I live for. To have my enemy looking up to me in fear as I smile back to them.

As expected his instincts kicked in and he tried to run but I took two steps ahead and punched him on the nape of neck again.

Once he was down I stomped his head with my foot. He screamed his life out but no one was coming to save him.

After a few moments, two policemen patrolling the area noticed the disturbance and came over to check on us.

The clerk lied on the floor half dead, while I sat on his body. The girl was still spacing out but when she noticed the police she came back to her senses.

"Young man, you are in big trouble." Said the policeman as he grabbed my hand.

I remained silent, wondering if the girl would report this trash or not.

The other policeman approached her and noticed her unbuttoned shirt.

He asked her something, but she was still spacing out. He looked at me and turned to her again, whatever he asked her shocked her. She looked at me and our eyes met once.

I peered deep into her soul, it will happen anytime now.

She looked back at the guy interrogating her and said something. After exchanging a few more surprised glances with me the policeman pulled up the clerk.

"According to the victim, this is our criminal." said the guy interrogating the girl, as he pointed towards the clerk.

On hearing the words of his colleague the grip of the guy holding me loosened. I snatched my hand out.

So she did report the clerk trying to rape her. I wanted to see what were the consequences of this but it seems like I will have to wait for later.

"I have the proof." I said.

Once both of them were convinced they left the scene handcuffing the dog who had gone mad in lust.

[ A/N: Fear not readers, I am not sailing Ryuuenxairi . .. or am I? *Looks at Ryuuen*

Ryuuen: Don't even think.

looks at readers]

You won't remember

You won't remember (Ayanokouji's POV)

(A/N: I am going to write some isekai magical world dark demon stuff, which isn't much cote related except the cast of main characters. So this is drifting off a little from the main theme of the fanfic, if you don't like this genre you can always skip this part. But yea . . I am gonna do one isekai chapter in every .5 volume of my fanfic. This is my first time trying isekai. .so you get the idea.)

With the regular classes missing from my daily life I didn't have anything in particular to do with the time on my hands. I wasn't friends with anyone in particular that I would like to hang around with. To kill time I started surfing on the internet, randomly stumbling upon an article on "Dreams".

The article described different types of dreams:

Lucid dream: When a person is aware that they are in a dream on a subconscious level.

That does sound interesting, perhaps the dreamer might gain some control over the events that way.

Day dream: Daydreaming is the stream of consciousness that detaches from current.

Attention drifting to a rather personal and internal direction, this might be the only dream I ever had.

False awakening: A false awakening is a vivid and convincing dream about awakening from sleep, while the dreamer in reality continues to sleep.

I am glad I haven't experienced anything similar.

Recurring dream: A recurring dream is a dream which is experienced repeatedly over a long period.

This can be heavenly if the dream is a pleasant one, but if it is nightmarish one would suffer heavily.

Soon I ended the article and laid down on the bed. It is truly fascinating that the human brain has infinite potential when dreaming.

The tragedy of this beauty is that when it comes to dreaming they might have infinite possibilities but when it comes to actually doing they become limited.

Riding my train of thoughts before I knew I was asleep. Soon I woke up to find myself lying on a scorching ground.

I propped myself up and looked around. A room with walls made out of wood, the whole place was rocking gently.

"These aren't the ones I summoned." said a small girl wearing a witch hat.

"How do we send them back?" Said a girl with shoulder length black hairs, her red eyes pierced through me.
"Perhaps killing another apostle might generate the energy required to open the same portal again." replied the small witch.
"But now the only apostle alive is the rogue apostle we are hunting."
"That just means if these humans want to go home then they must aid us in killing the apostle, "said the witch with a smile.

"Things are more complicated solution isn't just killing the Sassanian King." A guy walked out of the shadows.

His build might be different, but there was no mistaking. He looks exactly like me, I recognize the black haired girl looking identical to Horikita.

But the small witch isn't someone I have seen before.
(A/N: So in the story Ayanokouji hasn't met Arisu yet, thus he doesn't recognize her.)

I noticed a circle with a mystic pattern appear on the other side of the room. As it moved upwards it revealed a figure, soon it solidified and a familiar girl came into my sight.

"I didn't summon this one." said the witch.

"It doesn't matter at this point, the problem is that we can't send them back."

Ichinose was just as dumbfounded as I was, she was wearing a white top and blue shots. A casual wear indoors. Everyone then turned their eyes towards me, Ichinose spotted me as well.
She slowly walked across the room and stood beside me as there was a sense of similarity between the two of us when compared to the other three individuals present in the room.

"This one looks like you, let's explain the situation and perhaps he can help us." said Horikita.

"Yes, after all the man standing with us can't use magic either." said the witch.

"Let me introduce you to the situation." said the guy who looked like me.

"Please do." replied Ichinose.

"I am Ayanokouji Kiyotaka."

What a coincidence, I happen to be the same.

"The kingdom of Balden is being invaded by Sassanian empire. As of now you are on one of the fifty ships about to invade the kingdom." all of us listened to him silently as he spoke.

History isn't exactly my forte, but as far as I remember this event wasn't there in the History of Balden.

"Arisu, performed a forbidden sorcery to get us help from my counterpart of a different dimension. That is how you and this other girl ended up here." said Ayanokouji as he looked at Ichinose.
So they were trying to summon help and ended up summoning us instead, I wonder what they need help with.

"You all look like people I know," said Ichinose.

"Understandable."

"What help did you need?" I asked.

He looked at the witch named Arisu and she casted an illusion on the wooden wall of the room. It showed the picture of an emperor sitting on his throne, the throne sat on the back of an ominous elephant.

"In the world filled with sorcery, humans consumed by dark magic have become actual demons. Such kind are called the apostles, as of now the empire have gained control of the main city of Balden. The ships we are riding are the forces that will help the expansion of the territory of the Sasanian empire." Horikita explained.

".."

"If it is going smoothly then why do you need help?"

"Our mission is to assassinate the King leading this invasion." Ayanokouji's words didn't fit well with the image of the king who looked back to us.

(A/N: This pic isn't mine, it belongs to the real artist. Wait that sounded wrong, I don't own this pic it belongs to real artist.)

"That thing, isn't the king right?" Ichinose asked with fear in her voice. She is right, even the horse looks ominous at this point.

"Yes, if you plan to return to your world then you must help us assassinate that apostle," the witch announced this fact.

"In your world you were sleeping, dreaming peacefully when fate chose you to be here." she continued.

"So how are we going to kill the King?"

"Reaching him within itself is a challenge." stated Horikita.

"Huh?"

Ichinose was dead silent, she was clearly not ready for all this.

But, the people don't seem to be joking.

"Horikita, explain the situation to them and give them a boat. Our ship will soon reach the port." Ayanokouji ordered.

"Leaving these two out in that town would mean instant death for them." She retaliated.

"Explain to them the situation and leave them." He replied in an indifferent voice, but his words were cold.

I looked at Ichinose who was trying to gather her thoughts. I looked at the witch as she nonchalantly cleaned her staff.

Horikita started explaining the situation and it just made it worse for Ichinose, she was having a hard time digesting the gravity of the situation.

Once Horikita was done explaining we were given a small boat and left the ship which was approaching land swiftly.

"Plundering or sneaking, I will be in the castle four days from now." With this Ayanokouji turned his back on me and Ichinose sitting on the boat.

We rowed perpendicular with respect to the direction of the ship, going in with the reinforcement would mean getting caught instantaneously. I wonder how the other Ayanokouji isn't identified yet, perhaps the witch is casting a spell for that too.

Ichinose wasn't in fear now, once she was out in the sea on this boat she realized that the quest for survival is a real one.

"Ayanokouji-kun, what are we going to do?"
"Find a safe land."

She nodded slightly. From the looks of it, night is still young so we have time to find a suitable place.

Given the five people we had, making me and Ichinose team wasn't the best choice. If anything the team should've someone who has an understanding of this place, but there isn't.

It concludes there wasn't much hope of help from the two of us, in order to avoid the burden we were left alone out there. Either we do or die. It will be beneficial for them since we have the same goal.

This is something I would've done to achieve the goal, but sacrificing myself is still something that would need deep thought.

Thinking about it has no merits at this point. I must keep myself and Ichinose safe for now.

While rowing the boat, I recalled the conversation with Horikita that threw lights on the mortal dangers lying ahead.

"The town is in a despicable state, there are corpses hanging everywhere. Sunlight hasn't reached the city for days due to thick fog surrounding the city." She stated.

"A fog that thick can't be natural." I retorted.

"Yes, according to the citizens; one day the fog swallowed the whole city, as if attracted by it horrors began to prowl the streets."

"What kind of horrors?" Ichinose squeaked.

"That is still unknown, most of the people who go out of their house don't return, while those who confine themselves can't see but only hear the nightmare unfolding outdoors." she explained in a professional manner.

I wonder how they have obtained so much intel and also merged with the Sassanian army.

"I see."
"Being caught outside would mean death for a man who isn't from the Sasanian empire. While women are taken hostages, according to the intel we; the common women are offered as a sacrifice to their god while the lush and fertile women are bred by the invaders to take over the race."

On hearing the fate of the captives Ichinose let out a gasp, she might be underage but law is trivial in this matter. She is in grave danger once she is in the city. Not to mention I would be killed if we got caught but that is still better than being ravished by invaders.

Once Horikita was done with her part the witch added one last piece of advice.

"The congruency of the fog and the oceans of death are no coincidence. Fog is a detection magic by which death finds you, make sure you avoid that or be ready to face what it invites." Arisu added.

I nodded slightly, acknowledging her understanding of magic.

This world is terrifying yet it has so much to learn, if I can learn something applicable and make it back to my world I wonder what changes I can bring forth in human history.

As if reading my mind the witch smiled back at me gently and said.

"Considering the prospect you make it back to your world. The details of this dream, you won't remember."

End of volume 3.5 (Q/A)

Yeah, the cover says it all. I have been choked by readers for drifting off too far from the original theme of the fanfic, for the last isekai chapter. So I am dropping that arc, I will write it in some other story.

Like, isekai wasn't that bad of an idea right? I was writing it but I realized not many people were here for that.

Ryuuen x Airi is cursed? I think I might be able to write this ship if people are interested to see it.

The A/n's in 3.5 were a lot I think. I should stop them in next volume, right?

From what I have prepared the main cast of Class D right now is Honami, Ayanokouji, Horikita and Chiaki on her way. Is there anyone else you would like to see in it?

Anyone out of character when compared to the real LN?

Any major plot holes?

Is there anything major that you dislike in the story? or anything you like a lot?

The answer of these questions will help as assistance for the fanfic so it would be great to see your views on it.

You can ask your questions in comment section, I will answer or justify accordingly.

After this I will resume the main story and the Sports festival arc will begin. Thanks to you all for reading this story.

Chapter- 1 (Vol 4 Sports festival arc begins)

Sport's festival begins

Chapter- 1 (Ichinose's POV)

Summer break which was expected to be three weeks long turned out to be hiding two special exams within it. If we look at the combined result it won't be an exaggeration to say that our class was the one which grew the most if you look at points.

But as individuals? Concluding that isn't exactly the thing a student like me can do, but there is one student that is frantically trying to hinder the results of our class.

I have a solid idea who that might be but still I lack solid evidence to prove that fact.

It has been a long summer break but finally we are back in our classroom.

The school bell declared the beginning of our homeroom period, all the students sat on their seats quietly. This discipline was learned the hard way from the loss our class suffered in the first month.

Voice of the sliding door broke the silence and Chabashira-sensei walked in, carrying a bunch of papers with her.

Chabashira-sensei received perplexed looks from the students but it didn't look like she cared.

"Starting today, your regular classes will resume. However, in this month of September we will be holding more physical education classes to prepare for the sports festival. Your weekly schedule will change so please review them carefully each week, we will also provide material related to sports festival. Students seated in the front, please pass handouts to those behind you, and so on." she said while walking around elegantly giving students handouts regarding the festival.

The small sound of whispering between students shot up when they heard about the sports festival, Hirata who was sitting behind me raised his hand.

"Sensei, is this festival another of the special exams?" Hirata asked.

Special exams have always come to us in a surprising manner, rather at this point it would be a surprise if this festival wasn't one.

"You can interpret it however it suits you. In any case, this event will massively impact each and every class."

So according to her the sports festival has the impact similar to a special exam but isn't a special exam exactly.

I glanced to my back to find Horikita-san and Ayanokouji-kun discussing the handout.

I turned the pages of the handout, skimming through the general information I found myself on the page that stated the mechanism of this test.

"Some people have noticed this already, but for this year's festival, we're going to divide all the students across all grade levels into two groups and have them compete against each other. You in Class D are assigned to the Red Team. Class A is also assigned to the Red Team, so they will compete alongside you," explained Chabashira-sensei.

Classes B and C were assigned to the White Team. It would be Red versus White. A feeling of uneasiness welled up inside me considering the prospect of going against Ryuuen again.

Sports Festival Rules and Team Division

The sports festival divides all students, across all grade levels, into two teams: Red and White. The breakdown goes as follows: Classes A and D are on the Red Team, Classes B and C are on the White Team.

Point Allocation for All Competitors (Individual Competitions)

Points will be allocated as follows: first place will be awarded fifteen points, second place will be awarded twelve points, third place will be awarded ten points, and fourth place will be awarded eight points.

One point will be deducted for coming in fifth place, and one additional point will be subtracted for each place below that. (During a team competition, the winning team will be awarded 500 points.)

Point Allocation for Recommended Competitors

Points will be allocated as follows: first place will be awarded fifty points, second place will be awarded thirty points, third place will be awarded fifteen points, and fourth place will be awarded ten points.

Two points will be deducted for coming in fifth place, and two additional points will be subtracted for each place below that. (The final competition, the relay race will offer three times the point values.)

Red Team vs. White Team Outcome

After reviewing the combined overall scores for each class, 100 class points will be deducted from the first-, second-, and third-year batches of the two classes on the losing team.

The Effect of Ranking by Grade Level

Fifty class points will be awarded to the class that scores highest in each of the three grade levels. Classes that achieve second place in their grade level will not see any changes to their class point totals. Classes that achieve third place in their grade level will have fifty class points deducted, and classes

that achieve fourth place will have 100 class points deducted.

I noticed the winning prize wasn't specified in this handout, I raised my hand to ask sensei about it.

"Sensei, the prize for the winning team isn't written anywhere in this handout."

"The reward will be not having any points deducted." Her answer shook the entire class. In other words this festival is all about evading damage, if you come out unscathed that is victory for you.

"Please keep in mind that points are awarded and subtracted, not just by team, but on a class-by-class basis. So, even if the Red Team wins, you'll still be hit by the 100-point penalty if Class D holds the lowest combined overall score," her warning also hinted towards the worst case scenario where we end up receiving both the penalties.

Individual Competition Rewards (may be applied to the next midterm exam)

Students who achieve first place in an individual competition will be awarded either 5000 private points, or the score equivalent of three points on a written test. (In the event that a student accepts the test points, they will not be allowed to give those test points to another student.)

Students who achieve second place in an individual competition will be awarded either 3000 private points, or the score equivalent of two points on a written test. (In the event that a student accepts the test points, they will not be allowed to give those test points to another student.)

Students who achieve third place in an individual competition will be awarded either 1000 private points, or the score equivalent of one point on a written test. (In the event that a student accepts the test points, they will not be allowed to give those test points to another student.)

Students who score lowest in an individual competition will have 1000 private points deducted from their total. (In the event that a student has less than 1000 points, they will instead receive a one-point penalty on a written

exam.)

Regarding Rule Violations/Foul Play

Read and comply with every competition's rules. Those who violate the rules will be disqualified. Anyone engaging in foul play may be forced to withdraw from the festival. In such cases, the school may render all previously awarded

points invalid.

MVP Reward

The student who receives the highest total score across all competitions will be awarded 100,000 private points.

MVP Rewards for Each Individual Grade Level

The three students from each grade level who receive their grade's highest total score across all competitions will be awarded 10,000 private points.

At first glance the risk of this festival seemed to outweigh the rewards but as I read further it seems like there are few indirect rewards that balance things out.

For students with weak academics but strong athletics this is a golden opportunity to gather a few points for the future tests.

I raised my head to find Chabashira-sensei answering the flood of questions by students, Ike and Sudou were especially brimming with anticipation.

After all competitions end, the school will calculate each student's point total and assign penalties to the ten lowest-scoring students in each year. The exact nature of the penalties will vary depending on grade level, so please consult the homeroom instructor in charge.

On reading this I once again raised my hand grabbing the attention of Sensei.

"Yes?"
"There seems to be a penalty for individuals with lowest ranking in each year, what kind of penalty would our year receive?"

"For you first-year students, the penalty would be a point deduction on your next written exam. The ten students with the lowest overall scores will each receive a deduction of ten points," Chabashira-sensei explained.

I can listen to the agonizing bellows of my classmates. Anyone who doesn't excel in academics and athletics both is going to suffer the consequences of this festival heavily. After all, expulsion was still a threat even in written exams.

Once sensei was done addressing the queries regarding the rules and points distribution we moved on to the topic of events.

There were two categories: first was "all participants" and second was "recommended participants", the names explained themselves. In the first category the whole class was bound to participate while in the other category each class would put forward the most athletic student they can offer since the prize of recommended events were higher than those of individuals.

On top of that the 1200-meter relay race carried three times the points of the recommended events.

Events for All Participants

Ball Toss (girls only)

Three-Legged Race

Pole toppling (boys only)

Tug-of-War (separate events for boys and girls)

100-Meter Dash

Obstacle Course Race

Hurdle Race

Cavalry Battle

200-Meter Dash

Events for Recommended Participants

Chase tag

Three-Legged Race (mixed boys and girls)

Four-Way Tug-of-War

1200-Meter Relay Race (mixed grade level, all three years)

(A/N: In the canon story all the events of the sports festival were done in the order of this list, while I have made some changes for this story accordingly I do think that in future I might have to change the order of a few events. So I hope you bear with me if I do that :)

Most of these events I was familiar with, but Chase tag was something new to me. In parallel to my confusion Ike raised the question.

"Sensei, what is this Chase tag event?"

As if she had expected this question to rise she took up the handout and said.

"Refer to page number 15 of the handout you have received." She said in a matter of fact manner as all the students started turning the pages at once.

Most of us were occupied with the rules so apparently none of us made it to the later pages. As I approached the pages I saw explanations of different events one by one and ultimately the explanation of the event chase tag.

The match lasts for a predetermined period of time or number of rounds. Each round has one chaser and one evader and lasts for 20-seconds long, or until the Tag touches the Evader. The winning athlete in each chase stays on as the evader.

While the losing athlete is eliminated. This process goes on until one team gets eliminated and the other team is declared victorious.

"Hehe, I am gonna nail this!" Sudou exclaimed.

Given his physical capabilities he might as well be indisputable in an event like this which required raw speed and agility.

"Now I would like you to turn to the next page for further description." Chabashira-sensei added.

"What is there more to it?"

Once I turned the page the actual complexity of this event came into the light.

"But, sensei. Isn't running in this arena dangerous?" Ike asked his unrefined question.

"No, it isn't. Every obstacle has an alternate route to cross it which is perfectly safe." She replied with minimal efforts.

I glanced at Hirata, it seems like he has started planning already.

"Um, do we have the equipment needed to practice this in school?" he asked.

With this element added to the event, the Chase tag has now evolved into something more than just catching the evader. You must navigate through the arena at your own pace, if you go faster and end up injured then it would backfire.

"Yes, the school has installed small arenas like these in the gymnasium for you to use." Her eyes roved around the classroom once she was done answering.

"Another important thing to note is the participation table. Fill it out with the order you'll participate in, and I will submit it to the school on your behalf. I don't imagine any junior high has adopted a system like this, so do be extra careful not to make any mistakes."

"Wait. So, we can decide the order in which we'll participate? Exactly how much freedom do we have?" asked Hirata.

"Your class must come to a consensus on everything to do with the sports festival, such as which students will participate in which events. No changes will be allowed once the deadline passes, no matter the reason. The submission window opens one week prior to the festival and ends at 5:00 pm on the day before it begins. If by some chance you miss the submission

window, you will be assigned randomly. So, be careful."

If school ends up assigning students randomly then our defeat would be set on stone.

"Excuse me, but I have a question. Is that all right, Chabashira-sensei?" Horikita, who'd sat quiet until then, politely raised her hand.

"Feel free," replied Chabashira-sensei. She smiled thinly at her.

The participation table seems to be a crucial component at the moment, questioning it thoroughly is the wisest choice as of now.

"I realize that no further changes will be accepted once the submission window closes. However, in the event of someone's absence, what do we do? In the case of an individual competition, I assume that would be treated as an

absence, but for group competitions? Especially in games like the cavalry battle and the three-legged race, we might not be able to compete at all if one important person is missing."

"Should you fall short of the minimum required number of people for competitions for all participants, you will be deemed unable to continue and disqualified," replied Chabashira-sensei.

"For recommended-participant events, however, you are permitted to arrange a substitute—for a price. To establish a substitute, you must offer points as compensation."

This rule fortified the rigidity of the roster further.

"While we're on the subject...if an athlete's health suffers, or they're severely injured, will it be possible for that person to continue participating if they wish? Or will they have to stop and see a doctor?" asked Horikita.

"We leave that to the students to decide for themselves. Knowing your own limits will be an indispensable skill in the working world. For instance, you can't simply take a day off just because you have a fever on the date of an extremely important conference," replied Chabashira-sensei.

The emphasis wasn't only on athletic ability but other abilities like decision making as well which play a crucial role in sports.

"However, if someone's health gets truly poor, then they'll have to drop out," Chabashira-sensei added.

"I understand." she sat down marking the end of her questions.

"How many points are needed to assign a

substitute?" I asked, raising my hand.

"A substitute requires 100,000 private points per competition. That's expensive or cheap, depending on your resources," replied Chabashira-sensei.

"I see. Thank you very much."

"Any other questions?" She asked as she looked around the class.

"Next period's location will move to Gymnasium 1, where you'll meet with students from other classes and grade levels. That is all," Chabashira- sensei said flatly. She checked the time.

"You have twenty minutes of homeroom remaining. You're free to use that time however you wish." With that being said she walked towards the back of the class and monitored us.

As if those words freed the students from their shackles, small groups clustered around trying to plan their approach to all this.

I noticed Sudou, Ike and Yamauchi had already approached Horikita, Ayanokouji witnessed all of it from the corner seat. At the same time Hirata was cornered by a crowd of girls led by Karuizawa.

I will contact them later regarding the planning for this festival.

Mii-chan alongside Shinohara and Matsushita gathered around me, their eyes brimming with liveliness.

"Ichinose-san, you have been running a lot lately. You should take part in the recommended events." Mii-chan pointed out.

"We have a lot of time to decide that, let's wait and observe the capabilities of other students."

Setting anything on stone from the beginning might suppress the voice of other students.

"I don't care much about all this, I just want to win some points for my next test." Shinohara declared her goals.

While chatting amiably sooner than expected the 20 minutes ended and the bell rang. It was time for us to head to Gymnasium 1, according to sensei there will be students from all years and grades.

Chapter- 2

Chapter- 2 (Ayanokouji's POV)

The whole student body gathered in Gymnasium 1 in the second homeroom period, I tagged along with the idiot trio. All three of them were brimming with excitement.

While Sudou was pumped for the sports festival, Ike and Yamauchi had motivations beyond that.

"Uh-oh! Man, just look at 6o'clock, she is thick!" Exclaimed Ike.

"Seniors are insane!" Yamauchi replied.

It is frightening how they can pinpoint a person in this crowd of up to 400 people without pointing a finger.

We all sat down and then a few students came up in front of us, apparently they were seniors. Perhaps they are student council members, but if that is true I don't see the student council president; Horikita Manabu standing among them.

Without thinking too much I waited patiently, the clattering and whispering noises of the crowd had gone down.

"I am Fujimaki, from third year Class A. It's been decided that I will be commanding the Red team."

Horikita Manabu wasn't the commander, perhaps taking care of council and commanding the Red team at once wasn't a wise choice.

Fujimaki's speech wasn't exactly what one would call eloquent, he stepped back once he was done speaking giving the students room to discuss their strategies for their respective grades.

The first year Class A students led by Kanzaki approached us directly, their unity itself was enough to make us feel inferior.

His eyes roved around and locked on Horikita who was standing with Ichinose. At the end of the Zodiac exam, Horikita and Kanzaki had agreed to form an alliance which would allow Class A to hold their position and Class D to advance theirs.

"It reassures me that our classes were chosen to be in the same team."

In normal circumstances, teaming up with the lowest class would only slow them down. But if you look at the remaining two Classes B and C, both would've hindered Class A's progress to the best of their abilities.

On the surface one would conclude that Class B is at an advantage of being teamed up with a useless ally rather than some enemies. But in reality Kanzaki knew that our class had the potential to attack, or so he concluded from the result of the last two exams.

As Horikita and Kanzaki discussed the matter further, other students of our class seemed perplexed. They didn't expect the Class A leader to converse to anyone from Class D so politely, but Kanzaki and Horikita didn't have the air of hostility between them. Thus, it came as a surprise to the other students, it also uplifted the respect of Horikita in the eyes of her classmates.

Ichinose was talking to other students standing besides Kanzaki, one student in particular had a warm and inviting aura around him just like Ichinose does.

"He is Sou Shibata." Hirata answered politely as if reading my thoughts.

"Oh, looks like they are getting along well." Hopefully the shock wasn't visible on my face.

"Yes, Shibata-kun is a friendly guy. He is extremely athletic just like Sudou so we should be wary of him." Hirata added.

A guy who has athletic skills comparable to Sudou and an attitude completely opposite to him, he would be an ideal support to a class.

"So do you have a plan ready for all this?" I asked Hirata.

"Not yet, but I plan on discussing things with Ichinose-san, Horikita-san and you soon. Would you mind if we hold a meeting at your room tonight?"

Questioning his strategy seems to have backfired at me, I won't mind witnessing the leaders of the class formulating a strategy.

"I don't mind, it would be better if you could tell me the time of the meeting."
"Sure thing, I will tell you before the end of today's homeroom since I need to ask Horikita-san and Ichinose-san as well about this." He said smiling.

"Okay."

Losing my interest in my class I looked towards recently dethroned Class B, the two distinct factions of the class were clearly visible at this point.

It won't be an exaggeration to say that internal conflict of Class B was the most intense out of all classes. The two factions stood apart from each other, Katsuragi stood there with a measly number of ten to twelve students with him.

On the other hand a large number of students circled around the other leader, whoever it was they were barely visible. I moved around a little to change my position, I noticed a petite girl sitting on a folding chair.

She held a thin cane, indicating that she has trouble walking.

"That girl is Sakayanagi Arisu, she is the other leader of Class B." A voice said from behind.

I swiftly turned around to find none other than Hirata, I thought he left after discussing the meeting.

And Hirata, stop reading my thoughts.

"It was obvious from how you moved around to find her." He replied.

Perhaps my actions were really that obvious.

"So she is the one who is leading Class B this time?" I asked.

"I would assume so, but given that she can't contribute much to the sports festival so I doubt it."

"I see."

Sakayanagi was the student that was absent on island exam and afterwards on the cruise ship, it is astonishing that she has managed to gain the support of her class to this extent even when she was absent on important events as such.

But then again, in leadership of Katsuragi his class has suffered to the point where they dropped down to Class B. It is natural that he has lost his influence over his classmates.

I looked around for Ryuuen but couldn't find him anywhere.

Ryuuen and his class had already left the Gymnasium, we weren't obliged to stay here but discussion with your allies was a key element to win this.

With nothing else to do I fiddled around with my phone for the rest of the homeroom period.

For most of the classes next period meant returning to their respective classes, but according to the new routine of our class this period was assigned as a P.E period to prepare for the sports exam.

Thus, even after everyone left, Chabashira-sensei asked us to remain in the Gymnasium and prepare accordingly.

"Before we decide any order I propose that we take today's time to make a record of the abilities of each student." Ichinose's rising voice grabbed the attention of the students.

"This would give everyone a clear understanding of our capabilities and also give the collective data would make the planning process easier." She added.

She scanned the class, observing if they agreed to the proposal or not.

"That would be optimal, if everyone is okay with it then we should use this period to do the same." Hirata took the initiative, everyone else seemed to be onboard with the idea.

And thus boys and girls separated, Hirata took charge of recording boy's data and Ichinose for the girls.

"While everyone gets warmed up, I will get a grip strength device so that we can measure the strength of our dominant hand." Saying that Hirata left.

A handful of athletic students started warming up but the majority of the class passed away that time chattering with each other.

Hirata returned with two machines after a short period of time. I wondered how he got them but decided to observe the events for now.

Everyone gathered around Hirata when they noticed the machines in his hands, Sudou made his way from the crowd and snatched one of the machines from Hirata.

"Let me try it, this will inspire the weaklings."

No one protested, Hirata passed the other machine to Yuukimura and took out a notepad from his pocket.

"Uraah!!"

His shoulders shook as he tightly grabbed the machine, the number on display shot up to 60 directly, within the next instant it reached 80. After a second or two it grew stable, the digital display said 82.4 kilograms.

"HA! HA!" Sudou exclaimed. The students around us crazed out.

"You wild animal!!"
"What the hell?!!"

Astonished praises fell on Sudou's ears, smiling with giddiness re rubbed his nose. But then his eyes caught the sight of Koenji who didn't seem to be interested in all this.

"Oi, Koenji. You do this now." Sudou issued the challenge.

"Spare me, I will pass." He shot down Sudou without sparing him a glance.

"Come on, don't chicken out now." Sudou tried to provoke him further but Koenji didn't take much interest.

"Koenji-kun, it would help us with the records for the class." Usually Hirata left Koenji alone, but this time he requested him to go out of his way.

Maybe if he contributes in small occasions like these, then he would take interest in the festival.

"Let it be Hirata, that-"

"It has been a while since I measured my grip strength. If you insist so much then I will grant your wish, Hirata boy."
Koenji took the machine from Sudou's hand and squeezed it.

Sudou's nervousness was clearly visible on his face, everyone else quietly watched.

The numbers shot up 50-70-80, the climb slowed down after crossing 80 and finally stopped at 82 kilograms.

His hands shook a little and for the first time in the day his smile disappeared. Amidst the silence realization slowly dawned on Sudou and his face lit up.

Koenji's score was below that of Sudou.

Or so we thought.

In the small instant in which Sudou's head loaded slanders against Koenji, Koenji looked back at him and flashed his white teeth.

He squeezed the machine once more and this time the results were different.

104.5 Kilograms

It took a moment for students to double check what they saw. Everyone around us went crazy once the magnitude of Koenji's strength dawned on them.

"Whoaa! Wow!"

"Bruh"

"This guy is crazy!!"

"What do you eat??"

Amidst the various reactions lied Sudou's crushed ego, he was given a faint taste of victory and then it was snatched from him.

Koenji had his own ways of imposing superiority.

"Oh my, looks like you are pretty strong. Red hair-kun." He added the salt.

"Tch, shut up you monkey." Sudou who has now lost the admiration of people was irritated beyond reasoning.

"Ayanokouji. You give it a try." Sudou's words took me by surprise.

"Uh, why me?"
"Stop chickening out and do it!" He yelled, apparently he was taking out his anger on me.

"Um, what do you think is the average score of guys our age?" I asked Sudou.

"It doesn't matter, everyone knows you are below average."

Ouch. It doesn't seem like I am getting an answer out of him. I gently squeezed the machine and the number rose up quickly.

Before I knew I had passed 70 kilograms, panic struck me and I loosened my grip all at once.

"You gotta hold it until the numbers stop dancin."

I tried again, this time in a controlled manner, calmly stopping at 69 kilograms, way below Sudou's score.

"Good, that is around average." Sudou said, scratching his head.

I walked to Hirata to report my score. It seems like he is busy settling some small disputes. Once he was done he turned towards me.

"Oh, Ayanokouji-kun. Are you done measuring?"

"Yes, my grip strength was 69."

"Man, you are a strong one as well."

"Huh? That's average I thi-"

"Hirataaaaa, I got 42.6 can you give me a small bonus and raise it to 50?" Ike interrupted me midway.

Wait, 42?

Hirata smiled at Ike and noted down 42.6 in his notebook. Above it were the scores of other students, I quickly calculated the average and it turns out that the average is around 45 to 50.

(A/N: Okay, so the grip strength of even 80 kgs with one hand is a lot for 16 yo and 100 for 16 yo is like uh for strongman category. But anyways I hope you enjoyed the chapter.)

Chapter- 3

Chapter- 3 (Ichinose's POV)

Once the homeroom ended, Chabashira-sensei walked out of the class.

"Ichinose-san." Hirata, who sat beside me, called out

"If you don't mind, can we discuss the strategy for the sports festival in the evening?"

"Sure thing! I will get Horikita-san as well, if you are okay with it."

"Yes, I was going to ask you for that. Let's meet at Ayanokouji-kun's room around four." He proposed.

"Uh, is Ayanokouji-kun okay with it?"

"Yes, I asked for his permission. He is okay with it."

"Oh, then let's meet at four then."

Hirata gave me a small nod and left with the rest of his friends.

It feels nostalgic, the last time we all met in Ayanokouji's room was in first semester trying to unravel the S system. Time has passed since then, for better or for worse the summer vacation has brought the students closer to each other.

Around 3:45 I make my way to Ayanokouji's room, most students are done with their lunch and are resting in their rooms so no one spotted me coming here.

I slowly knocked on the door and within a few seconds Ayanokouji opened the door. Apathetic eyes stared back at me, for a moment we stood silent.

"Pardon the intrusion Ayanokouji-kun." I smiled at him.

"Please come in." He replied with a small nod.

I noticed that he was still wearing his uniform, perhaps he fell asleep once he reached his room? And I disturbed his sleep?

His room looked the same as it was in the first semester, nothing new in it, mostly the stuff provided by school.

"Ayanokouji-kun, by any chance, are you a minimalist?"

"Uh, I can't keep my room clean if I have too many things lying around."

Picking up a small handbag kept on the table he walked into the kitchen.

"Would you like to drink something-"

Knock.

I walked to the gate, on opening I found Hirata and Horikita standing at the door. I chuckled quietly at the sight of the odd duo.

"Good afternoon, Ichinose-san." Hirata greeted me politely.

"Good afternoon Hirata-kun, Horikita-san."

All three of us sat down and Ayanokouji-kun joined us as well. He had changed his uniform and was in a home ware, that was fast.

Wasn't he in the kitchen?

"Would you all like to drink something?" Ayanokouji asked.

"Some water."
"Coffee."

"Green tea-"

Hey hey, he isn't a waiter!

"I will help you Ayanokouji-kun."

"It is okay, I can do it."

"It will take less time if we both do it."

Understanding the fact that Horikita and Hirata might not have much time for this he nodded slightly.

We both went into the kitchen, looking around a little I only spotted barley tea packets lying around. Perhaps he likes to drink that as his daily beverage.

"Ayanokouji-kun, do you have coffee?"

Opening a small drawer he took out the same handbag he carried earlier, it had coffee and green tea packets in it.

"I don't have them usually, but I bought some from the convenience store today."

Did he know beforehand that I like green tea? Maybe he picked that up last time he came to my room. Remembering the embarrassing event my cheeks feel hot.

"H-How considerate of you."

I prepared barley tea and green tea while he brewed the coffee. We both stood beside each other silently, I had several questions for him but I refrained from asking them.

In the zodiac sign he somehow figured out the VIP of Dragon group, I can't see how he did that. Also the fact that I had sent the answer in front of everyone, how did my answer get cancelled out?

I don't think he would answer any of these, but what is actually dangerous is his capability to do something beyond my understanding. He doesn't look like someone who has hatred in him, but I wonder what he will do to the traitor once he finds them.

Or perhaps he has already found the traitor and doesn't plan on doing anything?

Anyways, I won't get anywhere thinking about that now. The silence between us is growing awkward.

"I will check on those two." I whispered slowly and he nodded back.

While the drinks were boiling I peeked into the living room where Hirata and Horikita were sitting. I wonder if the air is tense among them or if they have got accustomed to each other at this point.

Both of them were reading the manual given by school carefully, apparently waiting for us to gather before making their point.

We carried the drinks to the table, and I gave Hirata some water.

Hirata took a paper out of his pocket and kept it on the table.

"This is the statistics of boy's."

"It seems like Sudou-kun is on the top of all the tests." I observed.

"Except for the grip strength test." Horikita added.

Looking at the numbers it seems like Kouenji [103 kg] is a cut above the rest. Ayanokouji [69 kg ( ͡ ͜ʖ ͡) ] was at third but he and Sudou [82.4 kg] had a major gap in their strengths, and same was the case with fourth place who was Hirata [55 kg].

"Here, this is the statistics of girls in our class." I presented the small notepad.

"Horikita-san is unparalleled in all the tests."

"Yes, she has exceptional athletic prowess." I added.

"Your time is also above average Ichinose-san, you are second only to Horikita-san."

"Onodera-san was absent during this, I think she might have a better score than me."

Horikita analyzed the boy's statistics while Hirata and Ayanokouji looked at the girl's score.

"Have you decided the participants for recommended events?" Horikita asked.

"Yes, Sudou, Akito, Ayanokouji and myself for now. We will decide on other events in the coming days."

"Very well."

"There isn't much we can decide from just one day." Hirata said.

"That is certainly true, in order to fill up the participation table there is a lot more to learn. But we must decide our approach to it first."

"What do you mean, Horikita-san?" He asked.

"According to sensei, the whole class must come to a consensus with each decision. The approach we take to fill the participation table must be supported by the majority."

Hirata's smile faded for a moment.

"What approach do you propose?"

"The ideal way would be to make athletic students compete for the win and use the unathletic as sacrificial lambs."
"That attitude won't be accepted by many students, naturally there will be people aiming for the prizes. If we deny their participation then they will revolt."

That is where we come in, we two might be able to negotiate our way into this but is it the right choice? I stole a glance at Ayanokouji who was sipping his barley tea peacefully.

"You can try moderating them."

"Horikita-san, I don't think operating on that extreme is a good idea." I interfered.

"Why would you say that?"
"It would make our participation table very predictable, on top of that saving the strength of our top athletes for recommended events will be a better idea."

For a moment she considered my words and then finally spoke up.

"Very well, there won't be a compromise in the recommended events. We can take a balanced approach for other events." On hearing that Hirata eased up a little.

"That being said, the secrecy of the participation table is paramount." The air around us grew heavier.

"Naturally, we would keep it secret so that other classes don't find it, but the students won't accept it if we don't let any of them see the table." Hirata mentioned it politely.

Hirata did not know that Ryuuen had the names of all VIPs from Class D. It would be a natural assumption to think that the traitor would have ceased their movement against the class as the risk of getting revealed is high.

But it looks like the traitor doesn't fear getting caught at this point, or perhaps destroying Class D is of greater importance than their own safety.

I can only recall one person who would do something like that, but I still need proof against her.

"We can't risk any chances in the sports festival, unlike island exams everything is set on stone once the participation table is submitted." Horikita didn't bother to explain to Hirata about the attacks of Ryuuen on the cruise ship.

"But we shouldn't doubt each other like that, what happened on the island need not repeat in this exam again."

No Hirata, it did repeat again in the last special test. Horikita made her point and looked at me to convince Hirata further on this.

"Hirata-kun, we are still trying to find the traitor. I suspect that the results Ryuuen obtained on the cruise ship is related to the traitor of our class."
Hirata grew silent, the connection of Ryuuen's achievement to that of the traitor frightened him for a moment.

Sip.

Oh god he is still sipping on his barley tea, just how many sips were there in that small cup?

"The three classes are ahead of us by a huge margin, if Ryuuen defeats us in this event then the hopes of overtaking him would also end there, that is why we should be cautious with the participation table which is the key of this event." I added.

Slowly but surely Hirata understood the reason for Horikita's action.

"Don't worry, you won't be alone. I will take the responsibility to submit the participation table."

"If you say so. Students of our class do have a lot of trust in you."

"Then it is decided, we won't show the whole participation table to anyone, we will only reveal each individual their own event." I announced.

"I agree."

"Very well."

Sip.

"If that is all then I will be leaving." Horikita said as she got up.

"If you don't mind, I would like to ask one last question." Hirata stopped her.

She looked at him, it was her way to signal him to continue.

"On the island, we gave four different VIP names to the class in order to narrow down the list of potential traitors right?"

"Yes."
"I didn't pry into this matter before and left it in your hands, but now I would like to know if you found out which answer Ryuuen reported on the island." Hirata's expression had turned dark.

"Why the sudden interest?" Horikita didn't flinch.

"If the results Ryuuen got on the island is connected to the traitor then that also implies that they are connected to the bullying of Karuizawa-san. After all she was called to the last floor on the threat of getting her identity revealed."

Horikita was a little surprised by his deduction. Karuizawa's name was only known to the four people in this room and Karuizawa herself, so it was a mystery to Hirata how the anonymous person who lured out Karuizawa knew her identity as the VIP. But now he can also assume a connection between these two.

"The name was Akito Miyake, if you remember then we gave this name to the girl's faction led by Kushida." Horikita answered slowly.

"Very well." Hirata got up and left the room.

"He looks serious."
"Seems so."
"You didn't tell him about the names we narrowed down in the zodiac sign test."

"If he zeroes upon the traitor at that level then they will notice him."

"Hmm, that would complicate the matter further."

After that brief exchange Horikita left as well. Now, it was just me and Ayanokouji left in the room.

"I will wash the cups before I leave."
"I can do that, you don't need to trouble yourself."

"It is okay Ayanokouji-kun, we always trouble you with our meetings. Even when you lack interest in them." I said as I walked to the kitchen.

"Why would you think so?" He asked, still sitting in the living room.

"You don't say anything at all when we plan, it feels like we bother you with all this."

"Uh, that is because I don't understand what is the best choice most of the time." We talked across his room, I was in the kitchen and he was sitting near the table.

"You don't expect a lie like that to work on me after the summer vacation right?"

After witnessing his powers in the summer vacation I am not a foreigner to his abilities. Horikita might still doubt him but I am sure that he isn't someone who can't hold an active discussion about the special test.

Or was it that his ideas are too good to communicate with people like us?

"The sports festival happens out in front of the whole school, there isn't much to scheme in this. It's major component is about teamwork and unity, which you and Hirata excel in."
Oh.

"I see, so um we don't bother you much right?" I asked, peeking out of the kitchen to see his reaction.

He slightly shook his head as an answer

"Hearing you all strategize is good for me as well."

"Then you won't mind if we gather here on weekends to decide the participation table right?"

"..."

Looks like he didn't like the idea.

"I don't mind, if you all are okay with it."

"Yosh!! Then it's decided."

[ A/n: Well you can guess from where I picked up that 'Yosh']

I washed the cups thoroughly and walked back to him, it was already late so I should also get going now or else students might spot me.

"Ayanokouji-kun, I wanted to ask you something."

"Hm?"
"How did you know that I liked green tea?"
"Uh, last time I came to your room you had a few packets stacked up. So I just assumed that."

"Oh, I thought so."
"I also had a question."
"Yes?"
"The barley tea tasted different."
"Oh, did it not suit your taste?"

"No, it tasted better than what I made. Can you tell me how you made it?"

"Sure!"

Phew.

Once we drank another cup of tea I left cautiously, making sure no one saw me. This festival is going to be enjoyable.

Chapter -4

Chapter- 4 (Nagumo's POV)

[A/n: While I want to write his POV, there isn't even one monologue of his as I remember. I might know the rough thought pattern but I don't know enough to write his narration. So his POV but 3rd person narration . .. . ]

The homeroom period had just begun, unlike other days today the council room had only two individuals working in it.

Manabu Horikita and Miyabi Nagumo.

On usual days these two would have a team of other council members assisting them, but right now the sports festival was still far away so they didn't mind giving them a few periods off for training. That included the secretary Tachibana as well.

Nagumo, done with his work, sighed deeply. It was still early in the day but today's work was done, with nothing else to do he fiddled around with his phone a little.

Once bored he leaned back in his swivel chair and locked his fingers behind his head. Simultaneously, Manabu got up from his chair behind his desk. This meant he was also done with his work.

"So what do we do next?" Nagumo rotated himself in his direction and asked.

There wasn't anything left to do, but for the formality of it Nagumo asked the question.

"I am going to visit the club rooms, to make sure that they have a utilitarian approach to their budget." With that brief description he walked out of the room.

Bruh, more work.

Nagumo thought in his head and followed him out.

Slowly but surely they walked across the club rooms, silently surveying them. A few people panicked at the sight of the student council while others welcomed them.

Soon they reached the track club, most of the students were wearing school track suits. Naturally, both of them wearing red blazers stood out.

After sparing a few minutes they left the place and made their way to the swimming club's special facility, which adjoined the side of the school building.

"This sports festival is a rare chance for all the grades to compete with each other." Nagumo said.

"Hmm."

"In the relay race I will beat you fair and square, it would be a nice show in front of the whole school." he added.

The perpetual confusion Manabu had regarding Nagumo didn't seem to be coming to an end anytime soon.

"My team is going to be the fastest in the relay race, naturally I will be the first anchor to receive the baton. But, I will wait for you, Horikita-senpai. I will beat you on equal terms." Nagumo said, spreading his hands.

On understanding what he meant to say, Manabu felt a slight wave of disappointment. Seemingly winning the 150 points in relay race was not much worth to Nagumo when compared to competing against him.

Then again, according to Manabu's calculation third year Class A and second year Class A would be the competitors for the top spot. So in the rare event that Nagumo has to wait for Manabu, in the worst case scenario Nagumo would still win the second place.

"Do whatever you want." Manabu ended the conversation with that short reply.

"Your apathetic replies always kill the mood." Nagumo said, keeping his hands back in pocket.

On reaching the special building they came across several locker rooms, there was one for each grade. None of them bothered changing, in the main hallway Manabu went ahead to talk to the clerk.

Apparently he was going to summon the manager to survey the working on a deeper level.

Nagumo went out of the main hall and stood near the swimming pool. Attracted to the blissful chirping of girls he lost interest in the work Manabu came here for.

At first they were hesitant but slowly they started approaching him when they spotted him looking at them.

"Good morning, Nagumo senpai!"

"~Get changed and join us,senpai.~"

Nagumo smiled thinly, the beauty of co ed never ceases to amuse him. Seemingly the pool had mostly first years in it at the moment.

"I am here for some work, I will have to leave soon." He said, giving the girl a small pat.

"~Nya~"

As he roved around the pool he came across a noisy duo. Both the girls bickered loudly and as time passed more girls joined both sides and the event became intense.

The childish squabble killed Nagumo's interest, so he decided to walk away from the unpleasant situation.

"That's enough Shinohara-san, Manabe-san." A sweet yet assertive voice stopped him in his tracks.

On turning back he saw a girl with long flowing cherry blonde hairs, within a few moments both parties simmered down.

.

Nagumo was captivated by her mature aura (he means body). Her looks were cut above the rest, when compared to her the girls swimming in the pool looked a little childish.

He couldn't spot a hint of slyness in her eyes, nor a hint of insecurity from being unguarded.

As if drawn towards her ripe pureness on instinct, he approached her.

"Good morning, Nagumo senpai."
"Good morning, . .." Nagumo replied politely while extending his hand.

"I am Ichinose Honami from Class D."

The special facility wasn't exactly inside the school, so the students weren't bound to be in uniform here. Naturally they wore a different swim suit than the one given by school.

But what Ichinose wore was a bold one. She didn't seem afraid to show skin.

"It is a pleasure to meet you. Are you all preparing for the sports festival?" Nagumo asked, looking into her blue eyes, trying his best to control his lavish gaze.

"Yes! Although swimming isn't included in the events, it is a fun way to exercise for the girls of our class." She replied innocently.

"A sound strategy to keep the unathletic training. You seem to be a capable individual, why didn't you try applying for the student council?"

"Haha, I am flattered to hear that. But I don't think I am worthy of working in the student council the way I am right now."

"Why would you think so?"

"I mean, I was allotted to Class D. I think I need to improve a lot before serving the council." She answered honestly.

"So would you consider joining the council once you advance to a better class?"

"Yes! For sure." Ichinose exclaimed at the thought of it.

"Just know that you can work in the council even if you are in Class D, I will approve your participation myself." Nagumo added.

"I will keep that in mind, it is just that my class needs me more right now. So I must devote myself there until we rise. Once that happens, it would be an honour to join the council."
"Well said." Charmed by her selflessness, Nagumo decided not to pursue her anymore than this.

They departed with a small handshake, Nagumo turned his back towards her and walked away slowly.

His lips curled into a smile and he licked them with his tongue.

It is the work of the future president to assemble his future team. (he means harem)

Ichinose Honami was one of the purest spirits he has witnessed in this school, it wouldn't be hard to use the same against her.

[A/n: I am not a fan of Nagumo, but I have to develop his character for the story so yeah.. .]

Chapter- 5

Chapter -5 (Ichinose's POV)

Two hours of homeroom period of each day was free for us to use as per our will. Naturally today we will try to establish a system in the class to make the participation table.

However, the truth is that we predetermined the system yesterday. The real challenge here is to make the whole class accept the path we chose.

"You are free to use the next two periods as you like." With that Chabashira sensei walked to the back of the class.

I stood up and so did Hirata. I let Hirata start his presentation, it was better for me to observe right now.

"In this festival the participation table is the key to our strategy. So before we start practising I suggest we decide the participation order." He said smiling, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"Oh, yeah we should do that."

"While everyone among us wants to win, we need to understand our athletic abilities. For the events of recommended participation we plan to choose the most athletic students for that." Hirata took a pause after saying that to grasp the reaction of the students.

Sudou was having a hard time containing his joy. However, other students seemed to be a little mad at this. But they had no choice but to accept it, since risking the large number of points offered in the recommended events was not a good choice by any means.

"Given the position of our class. We would follow the same pattern in half of the individual events as well." He said with the smile slowly fading from his lips.

Instinctively my head turned towards him, this wasn't what we had discussed yesterday.

"Wait, let us have a chance in the individual competition at least."

"Yes, that is right I want those private points."

We had discussed giving the class free will when it came to individual events. Why did Hirata change the plan midway?

"Giving an unathletic student a chance would mean giving away the top places."

With a slight hint of opportunism Horikita joined the argument taking Hirata's side.

Did both of them plan this beforehand?

No, their communication is limited to our meetings. Horikita was taking advantage of the small discord Hirata had created.

The class went silent when Horikita made her point.

"Hold a minute, you mean to say that we shouldn't have any participation in all this?" Shinohara was the one to speak up directly against Horikita.

Going against Hirata directly wasn't an option for her, so she attacked Horikita who seemed to support him.

"I never said so, I am in favour of letting you all have a few individual events." But skillfully Horikita directed her to the argument Hirata stated.

"What the heck?! I want to score better in my next test, I want to earn those points." Shinohara retorted

"Then study for it, it isn't like you can improve your athletic abilities in this short period of time, to an extent where you would get a spot in the top three."

In the face of logic Shinohara couldn't advance any further. Voices supporting Horikita were also rising, especially Sudou.

"Tch, if that is the case then why don't you and your athletic buddies participate in all of the events."

"Depleting our stamina to that extent would be unwise-"

"Shinohara-san, you have half of the individual events. You need not to worry, there will be a chance for you." I intervened Horikita midway.

Any more of her berating and it will leave a foul taste to the students.

"But. ."

"We can also study together as well."

"Uhh okay okay whatever."

With that Shinohara sat down. I looked at Hirata one more time, once people simmered down he wore a thin smile.

Out of all of us, it could be said Hirata cared about the class the most. His actions look like a direct attack to other classes, perhaps he plans on ignoring the traitor as they are one of his classmates.

And to solve the issue he wants to crush the opposition?

That would be an ideal solution, but pulling it off won't be easy. Yet, it is worth a try.

Confronting the traitor and dealing with them is bound to turn ugly, if we can do it the other way around without harming them it would be best.

I took control of the next part, this was the part I needed to play.

"Now moving on to the next topic, it is needless to highlight the importance of discretion when it comes to the participation table."

With a little uneasiness in the air everyone nodded.

"It is not like I doubt any of you. But to give everyone the participation table carelessly could prove fatal,"

"What do you mean? You won't show us the participation table?" Yuukimura stepped in.

"Hear me out Yuukimura-kun, we will give you all the information regarding your event. However the whole participation table won't be revealed to anyone." I admitted.

"What does this mean?"
"How are we supposed to discuss if we don't know?"
Voices against the decision began piling up.

"Why are you even doing this? Do you not believe in us? We have the right to know." Yuukimura attacked ferociously.

Realizing that Yuukimura doesn't plan on hearing my arguments I ignored him and walked to the board. Taking up a piece of chalk I wrote down four numbers.

1125

900

750

487

For a moment it didn't seem like anyone recognized these numbers. Then I wrote again

A 1125

B 900

C 750

D 487

Soon students realized these were the class points of the respective classes.

"It should be apparent that the upper classes are competing in a league of their own,"
"If we account for the penalties for class points in this event, in the worst case scenario we might receive a penalty of 200 points and get buried forever. We will lose the chase miserably,"

The class grew silent as everyone swallowed the consequences of loss.

"I am not being pessimistic, but this scenario might be on our door if by any chance the opposing classes find out our participation order." I continued.

"Do you agree with me on this now?" I asked Yuukimura.

"Ugh, but don't you dare rob me of my chance at this."

"Of course not, I would never do such a thing."

"Ichinose-san, if you aren't going to show anyone the participation table, then who is going to submit it to Chabashira-sensei?" Ike asked.

"I would submit it, if everyone is okay with it."

Students looked at Hirata for a moment expecting him to volunteer for this.

"That would be the best Ichinose-san." Hirata's words eliminated the other prospect.

With that the discussion came to an end.

During the lunch break Horikita and I set up a meeting with Kanzaki.

Most students were busy eating lunch in the cafeteria or the canteen so the rooftop wasn't crowded.

I spotted Kanzaki and Shibata sitting together.

"Good afternoon, Kanzaki-kun, Shibata-kun."
"Good afternoon, Ichinose-san, Horikita-san."
"You too."

"Our situation in this event is a little complicated, we are allies and rivals at same time." Shibata stated.

"That is true, revealing too much information will only create further complications."

"I suggest that we only reveal the group participants so that our class could practice together for those events." Kanzaki suggested.

"Hmm, that would certainly be helpful. Pole toppling, Tug of war and cavalry battle, you mean to organize a group practice for these three events? Horikita asked.

"Yes, seemingly these are the only ones that are of the 'Red team vs White' team format."

"Has your homeroom teacher mentioned the competition format of chase tag?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Not exactly, there is a chance we might have to face each other in that one."

"Hmm, then keeping the practice for chase tag separate is better."

Kanzaki nodded slightly.

"If possible then let's decide the time for practice by this evening."
"Sure, I will ask the participants of these events for which time suits them the best."
"Cool."

Seeing that none of us had lunch with us, Shibata offered us some of his lunch.

"Here, I bought an extra serving of Teriyaki."

"Yeah sure-"
Horikita suddenly stopped my hand. My eyes met hers as if asking 'What?'

It wasn't apparent from her expression but it was like she wanted to say 'It's a trap.'

'But he is just offering some food.'

'I have warned you.'

With the end of silent discussion I looked back at Shibata.

"Uh guess we can-"
Riing

The school bell marked the end of the lunch break.

"Guess we will eat next time."
"Cya."

Descending down the stairs, Horikita's long hair waved beautifully.

"Horikita-san, what's up with this skeptical approach to food?"

"It could've been a trap." She said without looking back.

"But, we aren't in the era where we get poisoned out of the blues."
"Not all poisons kill."

She sped up her pace, successfully she has confused me even more.

--

Pole toppling

It won't be exaggerated to call this thing mayhem. The ninja is the guy who sits on the top of the pole, once he falls the defending team loses.
I wonder who will be the ninja of our class. I chuckle internally at the thought of Ayanokouji being on top with his apathetic face.

Tug of war; this event heavily depends on coordination of the team.

Practice sessions with Class B will be the deciding factor for this event, the better our rhythm the more chances of winning we have.

While most of us might not be able to develop our athletic abilities to overtake the other classes, we can still develop our skills to ace the ball toss event.

Putting all the unathletic girls in this event would be the best choice.

Sipping my green tea I surfed the internet for a few more minutes. Soon, drowsiness arrived and I was ready to sleep.

--

It was a dimly lit room. My mother and I sat on the dinner table together. My small sister was already asleep, the night was so quiet that you could hear the ticking of the clock.

"Honami, let me ask you about a story." My mother said.

"What is this story about?"

I used to get excited considering the prospect of my mother telling me stories, but this seemed different.

"This story is about twin sisters, who happened to obtain a small bottle of poison ..."

"..."

"..." "..."

"...!?"

Rubbing my eyes I wake up from the dream, to find myself in my dorm room. A dream huh? I hope my family is doing well on their side.

Chapter- 6

Chapter- 6 (Ayanokouji's POV)

In the gymnasium we found an odd company waiting for us. Kanzaki and Hirata seemed to be discussing further strategies for combined events.

Shortly after we entered, the students of Class A arrived as well. Kanzaki walked back to his class and Hirata came to us.

"From today on we plan to hold daily practice for the group events which require cooperation of our classes." Hirata announced.

"Fine by me." Sudou didn't give it a second thought.

"From group events which one do you exactly mean?" Ike asked.

"Events like Cavalry battle, Tug of war and Pole toppling. The outcome of these games heavily depend on teamwork and coordination, so I hope everyone is okay with it. After all, in these events our classes will be on the same team."

"Yeah, let's do it."

On the other side Kanzaki had prepared his team as well.

"If you all are ready then let's meet in the school ground in a few minutes. We have the equipment ready to practice there."

As instructed both of the teams assembled on the ground, the first event was pole toppling.

In the real event there will be two classes competing against the other two, but right now we only had half of that strength.

Thus it was decided that we won't attack and defend simultaneously, instead one team will practice attacking the other and then the other way around. This would give each team an equal exposure.

"We will be attacking first!" Shibata shouted from a distance, the guys behind him were ready to launch themselves.

"Sure, I will signal you when the team is ready."

"Huh? I wanted to attack first."

"The next will be our turn to Sudou-kun, for now let's focus on our defense. First, we need a ninja. Anyone who would like to take the role?" Hirata asked, looking around.

"What's a ninja?" Ike asked.

"The ninja is the player that sits on the top of the pole. The game ends once the ninja falls off the pole or the pole hits the ground."

"Ehh, that sounds kinda dangerous."

"So who will do it?"

We looked at each other and slowly all the eyes turned towards me.

"No." Instinctively the word came out of my mouth.

"C'mon Ayanokouji it isn't like you will do anything on the ground."

"Leave him alone Ike, it shames me to admit it but that guy has the third highest grip strength of our class. He is stronger than you."

For the first time in my life I felt thankful to Sudou. The role of ninja was the comfortable one when compared to that of attacker and defender. But, the desperation with which the ninja clings to the pole isn't something I would like to suffer.

"What?! Ayanokouji you too!"

Ninja had to be the useless piece, Ike soon realized there wasn't anyone as useless as him around and climbed up. Yukimura would've been a good option but I doubt he would've been able to cling to the pole after a little disturbance to it.

"Oi Sudou, if I die in one of these, tell Kikyou-chan that I loved her." Ike sang his dirge himself.

"Yeah yeah quit whining, if you die I will tell her I loved her."
"BAKA! Tell her 'I' loved her, not you!"

With the end of that short exchange Hirata signalled Shibata to commence the attack.

Sudou and Akito naturally took the role of the "Killer" (A/n: They create interference with the attackers before they can reach the pole) while Hirata, Yuukimura and I stayed back as pole support.

"Ayanokouji you go help them too!! Don't let them reach the pole" Ike cried desperately from the top of the pole.

Meanwhile, all the Class A students clinged on the Killers. It seemed as if they didn't intend to attack the pole at all, everyone attacked Sudou and Akito as if defeating them was their goal.

Separating himself from the crowd, one man ran towards the pole. It was Kanzaki.

"Ugh, he is getting away!" Sudou yelled. But, the rest of the Class A students had him in the grip.

"It is two versus one, we can do it." Hirata motivated me, naturally counting Ike and Yukimura out.

Hirata went ahead and I stayed back waiting for the worst case scenario.

Kanzaki and Hirata approached each other, Kanzaki dodged any contact from Hirata. That was a wise choice. Since he is the only student from Class A, if he got engaged with Hirata then there won't be anyone left to attack the pole.

Both of them showed splendid footwork, they were clearly a cut above the rest of the students. It was a stalemate, no matter how many times Kanzaki faked, Hirata wouldn't let him pass.

"Uraahhh!!" A deep bellow was heard from behind.

"Argh, Kanzaki! This guy is breaking free." Shibata shouted.

Sudou was struggling frantically, it won't be long before he actually breaks free and eats Kanzaki alive.

Shibata instinctively left the fight with Sudou without any prior announcement and dashed towards Hirata and Kanzaki. Naturally the rest of the students weren't able to hold Sudou at all.

Shibata closed the distance and drove himself into Hirata. Hirata was down, thanks to Shibata now Kanzaki had a small opening.

Without wasting a moment, Kanzaki sprinted towards me.

"Ayanokouji!! Snap out he is here!" Ike yelled.

"Uh."

Kanzaki easily grappled me out of his way. Now it was just Ike and Yuukimura, whose combined resistance amounted to zero.

For a moment my eyes roved back to Sudou and I realized Ike wasn't afraid of Kanzaki. It was Sudou who ran towards them like some mad beast.

However, before Sudou could reach them, Kanzaki had pushed the scared Ike down the pole. They had won.

Shibata had showcased superb decision making skills, if it wasn't for him victory wouldn't belong to Class A.

With no one left to beat. Sudou put Ike in a headlock.

"That was intense." Hirata admitted.

"Yes, your class has some interesting individuals."

"Haha, Sudou is one of a kind."

"I think you should replace the guy with glasses, he doesn't seem to be fit for this." Kanzaki suggested.

"Oh you mean Yuukimura-kun. I know replacing him would be ideal but we planned on giving him a chance on this since Koenji-kun wasn't participating in the festival."
"So you mean there is someone absent from your class?" Shibata joined their conversation.

"Yes, most probably he won't participate in this."
"Damn, having students missing will hurt in the long run."
Hirata smiled back wryly, it wasn't any use to get irritated over Koenji at this point. It would never yield any result.

The practice went on, after a few rounds of pole toppling we moved onto the next event. Cavalry battle.

A few more students joined us to practice. Each class had four units, each unit consisting of four people.

The strongest unit of our class naturally had Sudou in the middle, Miyake at left and I took the place as the right horse. Hirata was our general.

The drawback was that it was the only strong unit of our class, the other units were having hard time assembling.

With a small sigh Hirata got off us.

"Sudou-kun, would you mind helping me to teach them formation?" Hirata asked politely.

"Yeah, these morons can't do one thing right."

Once we were ready Sudou completely dominated the match, any unit that came near us was destroyed. Not even the unit formed by Kanzaki and Shibata stood their ground for long.

As long as Hirata managed to keep his headband safe Sudou would destroy anything near him. But this also meant that Hirata didn't get the chance to grab the headband.

"Hirata, let's try your unit alone versus all our units." Shibata challenged.

"Sure if it helps." Hirata accepted the challenge, it wasn't the final battle so testing out different possibilities won't hurt.

Once again Sudou charged ahead at the four groups, Kanzaki and his unit charged ahead at us. They weren't stronger than our unit but for sure they were faster.

The unit had one of the most athletic students, they kept dodging Sudou again and again.

"Sudou! Behind us!" Hirata shouted.

While Sudou was busy chasing us the other groups drove into us from behind, and simultaneous collisions began.

First Miyake then at me, we lost our balance pretty fast and dropped down to the ground.

"As long as you work together you are invincible." Shibata said, extending his hand to Sudou.

"Next time we won't lose." Sudou stood up, taking his hand.

The practice went on for a few rounds and then at last it was time for tug of war.

Our strength was evenly matched but Class A seemed to have a better rhythm than us.

Shibata soon made friends with the participants from our class and helped us establish a rhythm.

"Ayanokouji-kun, let's mix up both of our classes. It will help us get along,"

"Uh, sure thing." I felt a little happy on realizing he remembers my name.

And so we mixed up our classes. I played from the side of Class A and soon both sides had almost equal numbers of students from each class.

Observing from each combination and their result, a rough estimate of everyone's individual strength can be made.

"Our class seems to be enjoying the practice sessions, with Class A."

"Huh?" Hirata sneaked up on me once again as I was busy analyzing the strength of individuals.

"Hirata, if we keep competing like this it might create complications in the real event."
Before I could continue, Kanzaki joined us.

"Why would you say that?"

"If we keep competing from the different sides of the rope our teams might end up developing a tempo opposite to each other. I think we should request the school to install some common weight against which we can practice this."
"I hadn't thought about it yet, but you are right. That would be a great help."
"Another thing."
"Hm?"

Kanzaki looked towards the main building of the school. Students of Class B had been constantly observing us since we started practicing.

Practicing in the open like this would give away our strengths and weaknesses.

"Let's ignore them for now, we can always alter our final strategies at the last moment."

"Yes, but what concerns me is the fact that there aren't any Class C students."

Hirata's expression turned dark on the mention of Class C. It seems like Ryuuen wasn't interested in spying on us. Even if he had his strategies in place, information on the opponent would always help.

"Maybe they have decided to spy on us and share the information later, so that other classes have the time to practice." Hirata hypothesized.

"Hmm, I doubt Ryuuen and Katsuragi could cooperate to such an extent after what Ryuuen has done in the previous special tests."

"What do you think, Ayanokouji-kun?" suddenly Hirata passed the reins of conversation to me.

"It looks like they sent the unathletic students to spy on us." I pointed out randomly.

"Wait, you can see that from this far?" Kanzaki asked with a hint of surprise in his voice.

"Uh, yeah I used to practice archery in middle school."

"You must be good at it."
"Not exactly, I always saw my targets but never hit them."

"Oh, that sounds painful." Hirata seemed to relate a little.

With nothing much left to do for today both of our classes went back.

"Ayanokouji-kun, tomorrow is Saturday. Ichinose-san asked us to meet again in your room, are you okay with it?"

Being the gentleman he is, Hirata once more asked for my opinion on it.

"Sure, when will you all come?"

It was refreshing to have a few people over my room once in a while, especially those who aren't like the idiot trio.

"Around four o'clock."

"Sure."

With that our discussion concluded. Hirata left Sudou in charge for the rest of the boy's practice and himself went ahead to help the girls.

Chapter- 7

Chapter- 7 (Ayanokouji's POV continued)

On Saturday afternoon I went to visit the convenience store once more, to buy tea packets. By the time I returned it was already 3:30.

After relaxing a little I washed my face and combed my hair. I wasn't exactly a fan of grooming but soon enough I realized one should groom themselves for the sake of others comfort.

I don't want people to look at me and feel uncomfortable.

I put three cups of water to boil on the stove, unlike other days today I was expecting a few guests.

Ring

"Huh?"

I checked the time to find it is already 3:45, it would be natural for early birds to show up. Keeping my phone in my pocket, I opened the door.

"Good afternoon, Ayanokouji-kun." Ichinose beamed at me.

"Good afternoon."

I walked in and she followed me . . . .. to the kitchen as well.

"Hehe, I knew you would have started by now. I will also have barley tea today."

"Are you sure? I have a few packets of green tea left."

"Nah, I drink that daily. It's cool to have some barley tea for a change."
"Very well."
"I will brew the barley tea, you handle the coffee." She gently poured two thirds of the water into another container.

She hummed amiably as the water boiled and skillfully brewed the tea.

Ring

Guess the others are here as well. Ichinose went ahead and welcomed them. I brought the rest of the drinks to the table as everyone took their seats.

"Sorry to bother you Ayanokouji-kun."

"It is okay."

Hirata and Ichinose discussed the statistics of the class they had acquired during the training sessions of this week. Horikita silently observed them, analyzing their reports one by one.

Slowly but surely they had started to fill up the participation table.

"Ichinose-san, would you mind organizing the training session for the ball toss?"

"Oh, don't worry about that, I have already gathered the girls for it."

"Can you list them?"

"Sure." Ichinose passed him a piece of paper.

"Is my name in it?" Horikita asked.

"For ball toss, I picked up the unathletic girls."
"Are you in it?"
"Um yes I am."
"Why?"

"Well it would become a waste of time if I was organizing a practice session and not practicing so I thought I would participate in it as well."
"Hmm."

Listening to all of their plans I drank a few sips of my barley tea. It was still better than what I usually brewed, if anything it is worth the small trouble of having them here.

"Lately, Class B students have been spying on us."

"Yes, I have also spotted a few here and there. They show up in our joint practice session with Class A." Ichinose added.

"Collecting information on other classes is going to be crucial, we should put similar strategies at work." Horikita suggested.

"Ichinose-san, would you mind taking some time out of your sessions to do that?"

"Yeah I can do that."

Ichinose clearly didn't have time for this, assuming she is training with Class B, then for the running and on top of that conducting practice sessions for ball toss.

I assume she doesn't want other students to hinder their progress.

But, something is off here. Hirata would be able to understand that much and yet he asked her to do this.

"Nice. Ayanokouji-kun. You don't usually train with us once we are done practicing with Class B right?"
"Uh, yeah. I am exhausted when we are done with them."

That startled me for a moment, I used to think no one noticed me lazing around during our class practice.

"Can you use that time to go around spying on the classes with Ichinose-san?"

"If Ichinose doesn't have a problem with it then I won't mind doing it."
It was a decent proposal, hanging around the guys of my class wasn't something I enjoyed that much. I am done collecting their data, information on the students of other classes will help me in future.

"Are you sure it won't hamper your practice?" She asked with genuine concern.

"No, no. I barely practiced after the session with Class A."

"Alright, let's start from tomorrow."
"Sure."
Spying with Ichinose around won't exactly be efficient, since she would draw a lot of attention. But then again, escaping the cautious gaze of the practice students would also mean to compromise on some information.

"Well then, let's meet again next weekend. All the best till then."
On that note the discussion ended, Horikita and Hirata left. Ichinose stayed back to help me with the dishes.

"Ayanokouji-kun." She called me from the kitchen.

I slowly walked to the kitchen, she had washed the container and held it in her hand.

"Wanna have one more?" She said signaling towards the barley tea.

I nodded slightly, it wasn't like I would get to taste it until next week. One more cup won't hurt.

Once we were done drinking she left my room cautiously.

--

The next day once I was done practicing with Class A, I moved to the meeting point. As expected Ichinose was already there.

"Where should we go first?" I asked.

"First, let's look around for Class B students. Naturally Katsuragi-kun would've set up some countermeasures to any students who would try spying on them so it might be hard."
"Hmm."

We roamed around the school campus, visiting different gymnasiums. Class B students were present but not in abundance, it didn't appear like any of them were holding any organized practice sessions.

"Ayanokouji-kun, have you heard about Sakayanagi Arisu?" Ichinose asked.

"A little, she is rumored to be the next leader of Class B."

"Yes, and from what I have heard her ways are . . .how to say, merciless?"

"I see."

"Do you have any strategy ready for this?" She asked me with a hint of expectation.

"I told you, this festival is about teamwork and unity. You have the key role to play in it." I threw the ball back in her court.

"Hmph, I thought the same on the cruise ship. But you were doing something else behind the scenes." She complained softly.

"Ryuuen's attacks are on an individual level, you did whatever you could've against him."
"Well yes. He is the wall that stands between us and the upper classes, I am still having a hard time thinking how we will ever breach him."

"Hmm, I wonder the same."

What I was actually looking for was Class C students, none of them seemed to be out on the field. None of them were spying either, so what are they doing?

"Ichinose-saaan." A distant voice echoed in my ears.

We turned back to find a few girls from Class A.

"We are going to practice ball toss, wanna play a match with us?" the girl said.

"Ummm, sure thing one match won't hurt." Ichinose accepted the invitation with a little hesitation.

"Do you practice with them often?" I asked as we walked towards the setup.

"Yeah, sometimes both our classes practice together." She whispered back.

This will be a good chance to grasp the situation of ball toss played by girls, which wasn't usually witnessed by guys.

But to my disappointment they didn't exactly play a round of the game but simply practiced to throw the ball into the bucket.

Each girl was surrounded with a huge number of balls and one bucket placed a few meters away from her. They threw the balls in an intermittent manner and compared their count.

But then again, each time a girl threw the ball. Her body bounced gently and so did. . . . .

I looked the other way, at the buckets. Looking at the girls was proving to be a distraction, I will just count their scores looking at the buckets.

"Ayanokouji-kun, you try it as well." Ichinose invited me from a distance.

I shook my hand slightly signaling my denial to play. But then I noticed all the girls were already looking at me, slowly the realization dawned upon me that I am the only guy here.

The girls slowly approached me.

"C'mon Ayanokouji-kun, give it a try." said a girl from Class A.

"Uh no-"

"Yes, yes we won't laugh if you can't do it." another girl interrupted me. Their invitation was at the extremes.

"Set up the bucket a little further, for him."
Wait. Why would you do that?

Ichinose brought a bag of balls to me, beaming at me with innocence.

You didn't set this up right? The question rose in my mind.

Whatever the case, it is too late to back down now. Everyone looking at me made me extremely uncomfortable. I decided to throw all the balls and get out of this situation as soon as possible.

I closed my eyes and sharpened my focus, distractions are a part of life after all.

The first ball I threw went into the bucket.

"He is good."
"Meh, beginner's luck."

Same was the fate of the next ball.

"Woh! That bucket is really far."
"Damn."

And next. And so on.

Once I understood the motion of my hand, it didn't take me much of an effort to throw the rest of the balls in the same spot.

Each time the ball went in the girls cheered louder. It was around the 9th ball that the question popped up in my head.

'What am I doing?'

"My arm is in pain, I can't throw anymore." I said hanging my arm as if it was lifeless.

"Awwww you were nailing all of the shots."
"Bruh, you're backing down after a 9x streak."

What does that even mean?

"Well then I will get going, Amikura-san." Ichinose bid a sudden farewell to the Amikura, who seemed to be leading the rest of the girls.

"Sure thing, stop by again sometime."
"And bring Ayanokouji-kun with you," a girl from the crowd added.

We walked away from the place, once we were far enough I raised my arm again.

"That was splendid acting you had there." Ichinose said with sarcasm.

"Did you set that up?" I asked, looking at her from the corner of my eyes.

"Haha, they wouldn't let me go otherwise. Are you angry?" She asked me giggling amiably.

"Not really, but it wasted our time." I rebuked her. That situation did make me nervous no matter how I look at it.

"Okay okay, but you are actually good at this. Would you like to teach the girls of our class?"

"No." Considering that very prospect makes me feel tense.

"Are you good at any other sports?" She changed the topic. Conversing with her seemed a little easier, primarily due to her experience with it.

"I was in the 'go home and do nothing' club at my school."

"And that means?"

"I am not good at anything in particular."

"That is a little hard to believe."

Ichinose and Horikita have witnessed me acting behind the scenes during the last two special tests, there wasn't exactly a way to convince her of this.

I took out my phone from my pocket and switched the screen on.

"It is time for the homeroom classes to resume, we should head back."

"Alright."

--

That evening I contacted Karuizawa to meet me near the special building. I didn't exactly plan on revealing my connection with Karuizawa to people, it was better to act through her at times.

But today I called her for some other purpose, I needed some information that she might have.

As I approached the special building I saw her standing near the entrance.

"What do you want now?" She asked, visibly irritated. Perhaps she was having some other appointment right now.

"It is about Hirata." Hearing those words, irritation faded away from her face.

"What did you do to him?!"

"Nothing."
"Oh, but-" She stopped herself midway, as if not sure if she should be telling me this.

"..." I remained silent, it was a signal to her to continue. Even if against her will.

"He has been acting strange lately."

"..."
"How do I put it. . . .he gives off this stern aura nowadays. But that is only in front of me, in front of others he acts as usual. He ordered me to make sure that me and my friends don't talk about our events to each other, and most importantly not to share any of our details to Kushida and her friends,"

"..."

"He keeps an eye over us like a hawk, making sure none of the info is leaked. At surface he might look like his usual self; always smiling. But, deep down he is growing uncompromising."

"Interesting." The word left my mouth.
Karuizawa narrated her situation in broken pieces. It makes a little sense now as to why Hirata left Sudou in charge of the boys whenever we weren't practicing with Class A.

Not only that he also made an attempt to separate Ichinose from the girls so that he can advance his moves freely, that means he might've commenced a new set of strategy that Ichinose wasn't informed about.

Eliminating Horikita wasn't needed since she was ignorant to the changes and was busy practicing alone by herself. But then why would he send me off as well?

An unathletic student who lazes around would be best to use as a spy.

The words automatically came to mind. At first I didn't want to believe it but it seems like Hirata has suddenly started taking a utilitarian approach rather than an all friendly approach to this festival.

The question is 'Why?'

Why did he suddenly change his approach?

From the rough outline of his tactics it doesn't seem like he is trying to deliver harm to class, rather he is trying to keep the class at peace and attack the opposing class with all the might he can summon.

Horikita hinted at the possibility of Karuizawa's bullying being linked to the traitor, that was the time Hirata showed a sudden interest in the traitor.

Even on the cruise ship, Hirata was about to go berserk when he witnessed Manabe beating up Karuizawa. There is a link to all this that is missing here.

"So did you do anything to him?" It seems like Karuizawa suspects that this change in Hirata's behavior has something to do with me.

"No."

"Ugh, then why would you call me here?"
"Remain in Hirata's vicinity for the time being, make sure you don't miss any of his moves. I will contact you later when needed."

His future actions would help in unraveling the missing link.
With that I turned my back at Karuizawa and started walking away.

Karuizawa had a past which was infected by severe bullying, if I assume that Hirata knows about this.

Then his reactions seem a little justified, under the second assumption that he is a protective boyfriend.

However, it doesn't end at that. The way he is operating, if the ultimate goal was Karuizawa's safety he could've confronted Manabe head on, or simply fortified the defenses around Karuizawa.

Apparently there is some other factor that is motivating him besides Karuizawa.

I stopped walking and turned back to see Karuizawa leaving slowly.

"Karuizawa." My words stopped her dead in her tracks, she slowly turned back.

"What now?"

Usually, humans share their secrets to others when the other party offers a secret of equivalent magnitude. It might not be a pronounced concept, but it is a natural tendency.

There is a small chance that Karuizawa might have the missing link I am looking for. This is a conclusion that is based on too many assumptions so I might as well be wrong, but there is nothing to lose here.

"Do you know something about Hirata that I don't?" I asked simply.

"Huh? I just told you right now."

"..."

It slowly dawned upon her that I was asking for a detail at a deeper level.

"N-No, I don't know anything." She said as a cold sweat formed on her forehead.
"..."

Chapter- 8

Chapter- 8 (Hirata's POV)

It was Sunday, usually I would go out with my friend by this time but for today I had different plans. Done with my homework I lied down on my bed, checking the numerous text messages on my phone.

Knock Knock

Earlier than I expected.

Opening the door I find Karuizawa standing alone, usually girls used to arrive in droves at my room but this meeting I set up with Karuizawa alone.

"Good evening, please come in, Karuizawa."

"Sure, how are you doing?" She asked.

"Fine, take a seat."

For a few moments we both sat in silence, checking our phones. Once I was done I turned up to find her waiting for me.

"Is everything all right?" I asked her with a gentle smile.

"Yeah, no one seems to talk about their events much. They practice around and chat about other stuff."

"That is convenient."

"But, you know I can't keep an eye on everyone. There are a few girls here and there and they end up revealing a thing or two." She added.

I didn't want to, but I can feel my expression harden a little. It isn't their fault, they are bound to discuss it in the course of one month.

But I had predicted this to happen sooner or later.

"So the information is slowly being leaked in parts?" I asked

"Y-yeah, I think so."

"I understand, I have a plan. Listen me out," Hearing my words she felt relieved.

"From tomorrow onwards I will ask Kushida-san and her friends to practice alongside you all."

"Hein? Weren't we trying to keep her and her group in the dark."

"Yes, but that will soon lose its effect gradually as everyone starts discussing their events."

"Hmm, but still why mingle us together?"

"It is to track narrow down the traitor,"

"From tomorrow onwards gather two or three close friends of yours, ask them to slowly gather information about the events of the others."

Karuizawa tilted her head as if having a hard time trying to understand what I was getting on to.

"Didn't you ask us not to do exactly that?"

"Yes, keep in touch with these three individuals. Once the traitor sees people opening up about their events little by little, they will naturally approach these three girls who have the most information about these events."

"Oh! That can work-"

"Not so fast," I stopped Karuizawa.

"Please, make sure that the flow of information increases gradually, if it is unnatural then the plan might fail," I said, highlighting the downfalls of this plan. After a small pause I continued again.

"Above all, at all times you must maintain a stern approach to this so that the traitor doesn't come in direct contact with you." I added.

For a moment she remained silent, then she tilted her head again.

"Can you explain it again? You lost me at the flow of information part."

Sighing internally I let out a thin smile. I started narrating the whole strategy to her once more.

"Wait a minute, if I employ a few of my friends to look around for information. Then Ichinose might find us before the traitor and you know spoil the plan."

Seems Karuizawa is finally understanding the plan correctly.

"Don't worry about her, I have asked her to go out spying on the other classes. She won't be a problem."

"Nice, what about that Horikita?"

"She doesn't take interest in the conversation of others; you can avoid her. Right?"

"Yeah, sounds good."

"Right. How is your practice going?" As if instinctively I switched our conversation back to the usual small talk we used to have.

"It is going well."

The two of us weren't exactly close, in a romantic way. But we have shared our past secrets to each other and forged this relationship we have now. It helped both of us in a way or the other.

After talking for a few more minutes, Karuizawa got up, getting ready to leave.

"Hirata-kun, I had one last question."

From my past experience I can safely assume it was never a good sign if a girl says this.

"Sure thing. What is it?"

"Why are you suddenly investigating the traitor now? I mean we knew about this since the island exam, but you didn't seem to take interest in it until a few days ago."

It wasn't a surprise she would ask this sooner or later.

"On the island when I found out about the possibility of a traitor in our class I didn't want to investigate it myself, so I left the job to Horikita-san and Ichinose-san,"

But after understanding that my ignorance had caused what happened with Karuizawa on the cruise ship, it wasn't an option to leave this matter in other's hands.

Even if it means destroying my image in front of the class, I couldn't care less about it as long as no one is bullied.

"But recently, I came to realize that I must take this matter into my own hands."

"Oh, I see. You can count on me Hirata-kun, I will help you with this."

"That means a lot Karuizawa-san."

Sometimes she amazes me. Even though she was the victim here, she didn't hesitate to help me in this dangerous situation.

With that our discussion came to an end and she left.

It went back and lay on my bed. For the past few nights I haven't been able to get enough sleep, even though I am tired of all the practice we do, I don't fall asleep easily.

Ironically I could feel myself slowly falling asleep as I thought about it.

"Hirata-kun, we are going ahead, catch us once you are done washing hands." My friend said as he exited the washroom.

I hummed along as I washed my hands.

Creak

The door of the farthest restroom slowly opened. A guy peeked out of it, his eyes filled with fear.

"Hirata-kun, t-they will be here again . . .. . Please save me." Sugimura said, stammering.

It was apparent from his voice that his spirit was broken. Slowly I walked to the door and opened it. Tears started rolling down from his eyes, he was covered with bruises all over. He opened his palm revealing a broken tooth, his pants were already wet due to some 'accident'.

The very image I saw shook me up.

Run away. What if they make this out of you?

The thought flashed in my head.

"My friends are waiting for me, I must go, Sugimura-kun." I said and turned back but he grabbed my hand.

"Please help me Hirataaa. .. Are we not friends anymore?" He tried persuading me, but I was too afraid to turn back.

Slowly taking my hand out of his I walked out of the washroom.

As I opened the door, four guys entered the washroom.

"Hehe, let's try breaking another tooth of his today." one of them said.

"Hey, move out of the way." another one said to me.

"Huh, yeah I am sorry."

I moved out of the restroom as soon as possible.

Haaaa!!!! Noooo- MMffff

A loud scream was suppressed, without looking back I kept walking. Away from all this, back to my 'friends'.

--

"Hey look! That guy jumped off!"

"Who was that?"

"Whoa! Gross he is dead!" a student said as he clinged to the window.

I dashed down the stairs and made my way to the ground, where he fell down.

"It can't be Sugimura. It can't be Sugimura."

I kept repeating those words, as if trying to convince myself.

'You killed me Hirata' A distant voice spoke to me. But I didn't stop.

On reaching there my worst fears were realized, Sugimura's body was twitching as if not ready to accept the immense pain it was going through.

Aaaaaaa!!!

A deafening scream fell on my ears, loud enough to cancel out any other noise. Suddenly the world went silent.

My throat hurts.

Why is everyone silent?

It took me a few moments to realize I was the one screaming.

In the next few seconds everything around me turned hazy. I could sense immense hatred flowing through me.

"Hirata! Sto- Urgh" someone said, choking on his words. Oh, I am holding his neck no wonder he is choking.

"Hirata! He broke it by mistake! Leave him."

"I was joking man, p-please let me go."

Everything seemed so surreal.

Why are you all blaming me? I am trying to protect you.

Slap

"Stop this nonsense!!"

Gasping for air I woke up from my dream.

"Hahh, hahh."

It took me a few minutes to remember the world I lived in.

"I must not lose sight of myself in all this." I said to myself.

Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster... for when you gaze long into the abyss. The abyss gazes also into you.

I remembered the famous words, at any cost I must heed to this warning.

But, right now I can't step back either. I won't back down, I will take a slow approach this time. Slowly but surely I will erase all the conflicts looming over my friends.

Peace without conflict is the greatest conflict.

Ignoring the voice in my head I get back to my bed.

[A/n: I don't own the images, they belong to their owner - Papakoji 2021]

Chapter- 9

Chapter- 9 The actual battle begins

(A/n: During this sports festival I might be switching POVs a lot, cuz having a good grasp of it from only one POV isn't possible. Yes, if needed I will go for third person narration as well.)

Ayanokouji's POV

"What do you mean by that?!" Karuizawa yelled at me.

Tomorrow was the sports festival, I wasn't planning to reveal any sensitive information to Karuizawa at this point since there is a chance she might've turned into a double agent and could potentially leak my plans to Hirata.

Although the possibility of betrayal is very slim given her nature, it is better to avoid unnecessary complications.

"Exactly what you heard." With those words we departed.

"Now then."

Once Karuizawa was out of sight I took out my phone and made a call. Within a few rings they picked up.

Ichinose's POV:

At last the day arrived, the entire student body of the school gathered wearing jerseys. There weren't any spectators to watch it like it usually happens in middle school so it felt a little sad.

After a small speech by Fujimaki senpai, the school set up buckets and balls without wasting any time.

The first event was Ball toss. It will go from the first year towards the third year, the red team versus white team event has begun.

We all stood at the starting point, ready to dash to the court.

"H-Honami-chan I am feeling scared." Mii-chan whined standing beside me.

"You have practiced hard, don't doubt yourself now." I reassured her.

"Yeah, I will make sure you don't step in the circle." Matsushita-san stood beside Mii-chan.

Indeed, the participants were supposed to aim all the balls standing out of the circle of three meters. If they throw while stepping into it then they get penalized.

Bang

Everyone frantically ran to the court, there were a total of 100 balls. Once all the balls were in the basket the game would end, the team which had scored more would win.

Several minutes passed, each time the ball didn't fall in the basket a frustration would take a small bite of the student's focus.

All in all this was a game of patience. From repeated practice the participants of our class had mastered it to an extent.

"Tch, why the hell do you not fall in the basket?!" Shinohara-san was talking to the ball. Okay, maybe all of them didn't master it.

"Hey! Watch where you are stepping!" A girl from white team yelled at another girl. She had short blue hair and a small frame. But her eyes were fierce.

She was yelling at the back of another girl who had thigh length purple hairs. The girl turned back at her and asked.

"You wanna say something?" Why do I feel I have seen her before.

Both the individuals seemed irritated, ready to fight. I noticed besides me other students from my team were distracted, while the white team kept going on; not paying them much attention.

"Don't lose your focus! Keep pitching!" I yelled, bringing them back to reality.

A few more minutes passed and my eyes caught a big screen projecting the scores.

It read 42 - 40.

Only a few balls were left and they were already catching us!

"Woah! Matsushita-san, that was your fourth score in a row!" Mii-chan exclaimed.

Huh?

"Everyone, collect balls for Matsushita-san!" I issued the next command.

"Huh? Are you sure Ichinose?" Mako asked me.

"Yeah, wasting any throw would cost us a lot now, let's be fast!"

The white team was doing something similar, in the next few seconds the score was settled.

54- 46

The Red team cheered us from a distance, most of them were silent till the result was announced. But once it was done even the seniors seemed happy.

"You totally saved our ass Matsushita-san." Shinohara thanked her.

"Haha, even I was surprised."

"I never knew you were so good at this, I mean in practice your score was good but this was something else." I highlighted.

"Ehh, you were also throwing balls like crazy Honami-chan. You should've seen the look in your eyes."

We walked back to the tents chatting amiably, bringing in the first victory of the day.

This is going to be a long day.

Once the court was refreshed the seniors gathered around. Shortly after their matches were done, it was time for the three legged race.

This time it was the turn for boys to go first. Since three legged races occupied more space, it was natural that one group only had four teams running at once.

"Ayanokouji-kun, Hirata-kun, all the best for your race." I approached them, before their group came.

"Thanks a lot Ichinose-san, fortunately Ayanokouji-kun is highly compatible with me. Right, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"Yeah."
"That's great to hear, it would be cool if you both got first place."

"Yeah, we will aim for that."
With that the discussion ended and the participants took their position. Once the race started they won by a landslide, none of the other classes had any athletic students in their group.

"You guys overpowered them."

"Seems like it, the others were also slow." Hirata pointed out. Ayanokouji stood silently beside him.

"Well yeah."

Next was the race for first year girls, on spotting us Horikita joined our discussion.
"Ichinose-san if I remember right, your partner for the race is Horikita-san right?" Hirata asked. '

It was merely a guess since we didn't reveal all of the information from the participation table to him.

"Yes, we are in the first group."

"It is time we should get going." Horikita said.

I nodded slightly and left the two boys. On the start line Horikita-san tied the cord between our legs, I looked around to see the other participants in our group.

While none of them seemed to have been remarkable, it was the Class C pair that bothered me. It was Kinoshita and Yajima, both of them were extremely athletic.

"Horikita-san, let's go at the rhythm both of us decided."

"Sure, as long as no one overtakes us we will follow that."
That doesn't sound reassuring.

Bang

The race began, at first we were the one leading but soon enough my fears came true. The Kinoshita and Yajima pair were overtaking us slowly.

"I was expecting better from Class D." Kinoshita provoked us as she passed us.

I felt my feet getting dragged forward.

"Go faster." Horikita commanded.

I increased my pace, we were faster a few steps but Horikita kept accelerating and our synchronicity slowly started fading.

"Horikita-san I understand your blood is boiling, but we are getting slow and other classes are catching up."

Horikita looked back for once and realized that our pace was actually damping due to the break in rhythm.

"1-2-1-2-1-2-1-2-1-2" I started humming the rhythm and slowly she calmed down. We ended up in second place, it wasn't actually a bad position but Horikita seemed dissatisfied.

"I hate to admit it, but we could've won if I had a faster partner." She retorted.

"Wondering about that won't help us now, let's not let the next event get affected by this Horikita-san." I untied the cord and ended the conversation.

Ayanokouji's POV:

Even from a distance, the friction between Horikita and Ichinose was apparent. In the coming group the pair of Kushida and Onodera was defeated by Ibuki's pair.

Rest of the groups were conquered by Class A and Class B pairs. Till now Class D seems to be doing well which is usually just a step away from disaster.

The next event started without delay, our team for pole toppling assembled.

Hirata had assumed that Koenji wouldn't be complying on the day of the sports festival and didn't give Koenji's name for pole toppling. It would've been a shame if Koenji suddenly cooperated with us but didn't have the participation, yet that didn't seem to be the case.

"Alright, we have practiced for this a lot. Let's give em a taste of dirt now!" Sudou encouraged us.

"But, dude. Those guys look like brawlers." Ike pointed out, he wasn't wrong. Students having size comparable to that of Sudou stood on the opposite end.
"Don't get off the pole even if you are dead, do you hear me?!"

Ike was the one who was most afraid among all of us.

"Y-Yeah, I won't jump off the moment they touch the pole." Ike talked like a scared cat, stuck on top of a tree.

That doesn't sound promising.

"Hirata, we have to be fast. I don't feel that your class will be able to hold the defense for long." Kanzaki stated.

"Hmm, I will join the attacking group alongside you and Shibata. That would increase our chances."

"H-Hirata don't leave us alone man." Ike whined.

"Don't worry we will leave Sudou-kun behind with you all." Hirata consoled Ike.

"Yeah! You can leave those pieces of shit to me. You go get the flag." Sudou displaying his splendid intelligence approved of the plan of destruction for our defense team.

It wasn't a bad strategy, rather in this situation it was the only strategy that had chances of working. But, it didn't negate the fact that both the leaders were ready to sacrifice if it meant to create an opening for victory.

Sudou muttered a few words I wasn't able to make out but he seemed eager to meet his opponents.

"They are coming!!" Ike yelled at the top of his lungs.

The brawny students went headfirst into Sudou, they seemed less interested in the flag and more in Sudou himself.

"Urgh, damn how many of you are there!"

A few students from Class A rushed to help him, leaving the pole in our hands. But even after their support Class C was pushing forward.

"Bury him alive." Ryuuen said, spreading his hands. The attackers were already near the pole and amidst the angry roars of our opponent, Ike's cry for help was drowned out.

Once the chaos was enough Ryuuen ran towards us and kicked the dust making a small cloud of it rise above ground.

"Ouch, who was that?!" Sudou groaned.

In the noise it was hardly audible but Class C guys were now ganging up on Sudou amidst the chaos invited by Ryuuen.

"Jerks! You are punchin- Urgh" Sudou fell down to his knees wailing in agony.

Taking advantage of the situation, Ryuuen stomped on Sudou. Again. Then again.

The dust was slowly settling down now.

"Save me!!" Ike yelled. He was about to go down.

The whistle blew announcing the end of this round. Everyone on our side stopped, it seemed like the attacking team were the one to put an end to our misery. Although if it wasn't for Class A students still supporting the pole with their life the game would've been over.

"Bastard. I will report you."

"Huh? Didn't notice you around, did you lay down out of fear?" Ryuuen asked in an oblivious tone.

"This time you were lucky it won't happen next time." On that note he left us. Even though we won this round, the defense team wasn't exactly in a celebrating mood.

"Bro, is your back okay? I was looking from the top they mauled you."

"I am gonna return that favour next time. Damn it!" Sudou clenched his fist, apparently the attack has damaged his head a little at this point.

"Are you guys okay?" Hirata ran back to us.

"Hirata! They are attacking us like savages, at this rate we will die."

Listening to Ike, Hirata's expression darkened.

Ike wasn't off technically, their sheer force had shook up the defense team, next time everyone of us would be hesitant and not put up the similar amount of resistance.

"The defense team seems to be in a poor condition, we might have to switch things up a little." Kanzaki reported.

"I will switch places with Sudou in the defense team, you guys go with him attacking this time." Hirata said without a hint of doubt.

"But, our coordination might not keep up."

"Still, he will be of more help than me. But please be fast, we won't be able to stop them for long."

With that Hirata exchanged the position of certain death with Sudo without any second thoughts.

The next round began, Class C charged at us again. Once both attacking units crossed each other Ryuuen raised his hand and the attacking unit stopped.

He looked at Hirata and smiled.

"Defend the pole."

Obeying his orders his attacking unit retreated, catching Sudou and others from behind. A truly fiendish attack, nothing less would I expect from Ryuuen Kakeru.

Hirata sensing the danger dashed towards them without announcing. But before he could reach them they had already devoured Sudou and others.

Kanzaki and Shibata nearly escaped the destruction, not because they were speed but because they were spared.

Sudou was still struggling so they left a few men behind to restrain him. And then Ryuuen charged with his main force back at us.

Hirata stood there swallowing the loss he had suffered as Ryuuen and his unit passed him without even touching him. Attacking Hirata wasn't the way to break him, rather making him witness those atrocities were the key to it; and it seems like Ryuuen had got a whiff of it.

Kanzaki and Shibata, who had dodged the mayhem, chased back Ryuuen.

"Hirata! Snap out!" Shibata yelled, bringing him back to the present.

They followed up pretty fast, but after Sudou was gone Ryuuen didn't meet any significant resistance.

Effortlessly the half Japanese guy slaughtered us. They all broke into the inner circle and instantly the pole went down with the scared Ike clinging on it.

Ike, you could've jumped. Why doesn't your cowardice work when it should?

I shook my head, that question will only confuse me further. At this point the spirit of our attacking team and defense team were crushed, not everyone was physically damaged but still most of them felt fear within them.

Satisfied with his deed, Ryuuen stayed as the defense team in the next round. Katsuragi and his team did the necessary and the Red team lost the match.

Chapter- 10

Chapter- 10 (Hirata's POV)

The next event was the Tug of war. First year boys went first, another event for the Red team versus White team. Ryuuen's evil face was flashing in my head, he was targeting Sudou; our key player.

Sudou is getting bullied and I am not able to do anything, I must take preventive measures to protect him next time.

"Are you ready?" Kanzaki asked me, as if testing my spirit.

"Yes. We can't afford to lose this one."
Even though my spirit was disturbed it was nowhere near extinction.

"Glad to hear that."
"There won't be any physical contact present, so we will rely purely on our strength."

"Yes, we are safe this time. But we shouldn't take a lax approach."
The first round began, the signal went off and we pulled the rope the way we had practiced. For the first few moments we were doing good, but then suddenly we were pulled suddenly power surged from the other side.

"Put your back in it!" Sudou yelled at the top of his lungs. But it was futile, we were slowly dragged until we lost.

"Hahh, Hahh. It feels like all my power went down a drain." Shibata said.

"I think we should copy their arrangement." Kanzaki said.

"What do you mean by that?"
"Look at them, they are aligned according to their height."

I noticed the same when Kanzaki pointed it out, Katsuragi would be the one who would've come up with this idea. But this cooperation between his own class and on top of that with Ryuuen's class seems suspicious.

"Okay, this time let's line up according to our height." I said.

"That won't do us any good, what are ya trying to do?"
"Sudou, there is no harm in it. Go back at the end of the rope."

For a moment Sudou stared at me and then answered.

"We better not lose this time." He parted with those words, I realized that I had dropped the honorifics by mistake.

The signal shot off and the next round began.

"And pull! And pull!"

It took us a little time, but this time victory smiled at us. Ryuuen put his hand on his waist and analyzed the situation for a moment.

"Yes, yes, yes, yes! We won!" Sudou's celebration could be heard from behind.

Without wasting any time the next round began. Props to our teamwork we were winning again, the feeling just before victory was there.

"Halt!"

Just before the flag was about to cross the line suddenly we fell down on the ground as the resistance we were facing switched off.

We fell down on our butt, it hurt a lot since we were pulling with a lot of force.

"Ouch."

"Jerks, don't screw with me!" Our team was in chaos again, we had won but it didn't feel like it.

"Congratulations, you have grabbed a useless victory." Ryuuen extended his hand to me. I slapped his hand away and got up.

"Stop this Ryuuen, for the last two games your attitude has been unsportsmanlike."

"How does it feel, Hirata? You can't stop me neither can you help the victims." Ryuuen said in a low voice almost like a whisper.

I clenched my fist anger, those words triggered me but I must keep my cool in face of obvious provocation.

"You bastard, I got you now." Sudou extended his hand to grab Ryuuen's collar but I grabbed his hand first.

"Don't do it Sudou, this will only make it worse."

"Dude, let go of me I am gonna settle the score-"
"That should be enough out now, the referee is glaring at us already." Kanzaki interfered and we walked out of the court.

"Look at the bright side of it Sudou, even though we were humiliated we have won this." I tried to console him.

"Tch Hirata, you gotta stop being that soft. Or he will stomp over all of us one by one." With that remark Sudou left.

He isn't entirely wrong, it is my fault for not leading my class correctly that Ryuuen is bullying him right now.

Second year boys took their position for the Tug of war, Nagumo Senpai was in the Red team. He stood in the front of the line, looking at him from this distance I can't tell exactly but it seems like he has gotten leaner since the last time I saw him. He suddenly took his time off from the Soccer club, so I was wondering where he invested it.

I went back to my classmates, it would be better if I ask their scores and start calculating our chances.

"Karuizawa-san, how are things on your end?"

"It is all good, but something seems off you know."

"What do you mean?"
"It seems like the White team is the one that is disoriented, it seems too good."
"You are right, even in the investigation the traitor never showed up. It seems like they weren't going to betray us this time."
"I .. uh don't think the situation would be that ideal."

"What do you mean? Did you find something?" Her words seem to be hiding something.

"No, but I am trying to."

"That is something unusual." Usually Karuizawa-san won't make any effort herself as long as I didn't ask her to. Hanging out with her friends was more important to her than reaching Class A.

"Hey c'mon I try."

"Karuizawa-san you should get going, it is time for Tug of war." Satou-san interrupted us, and it looked like the tug of war for girls was beginning.
I nodded once and left them. The girls took position, our lineup was solid. It took them only two rounds to win the battle, it was one sided Red team had won.

The win wasn't only the product of coordination on our side but also the discord present in the White team.

"D/A coalition seems to be ruling on the girl's side." I said to Ichinose who was wiping her face.

"Yeah, our practice is proving to be useful. No one is under too much tension nor is anyone taking a lax approach to this."

"Any signs of the traitor?" Her smile faded away on hearing that.

"Not yet, but I am having this premonition. We might not be doing the best, but we are treading in this event and other classes are acting harmless till now."
"Haha, is that what girls' sides look like?" I asked.

"Yes, why? Something wrong on the boy's side?" She asked with genuine concern.

"It's just usual friction between the players, it happens in sports." I brushed off the topic, telling her about Ryuuen's works will only throw her off balance. There is nothing she can do in this.

"Next event is the 100m dash, looks like first year boys are the first one to go."

"I will get going then."

Third person POV:

The first group was of Hirata and Ayanokouji, besides Katsuragi there wasn't anyone notable in that group.

The race began and Hirata took first place. Katsuragi was fast but Hirata was faster. Even though he was running at a mediocre pace with an unambitious spirit, Ayanokouji was able to grab the fourth place since the rest of the students in his group were really slow.

Hirata returned to his class and stood beside Ichinose. The next group took their positions, and Kaneda stood in the first lane.

"What are you doing here?" Kaneda asked with a hint of surprise in his voice.

Akito pretended not to hear him, engaging in talk with this fox won't help him in any way.

"I am here to defeat you." But his pride didn't allow him to stay silent.

The other members of this group from Class C were unathletic one's, however Kanzaki from Class A was a formidable opponent. Once the race started Akito easily grabbed 2nd place, the match was intense between him and Kanzaki but Kanzaki managed to win by a very small lead.

Back in the tent, Ichinose and Hirata witnessed all this in silence. The feeling of uneasiness Ichinose was feeling was surfacing now.

A cold sweat broke on her forehead and she mopped it with her forearm.

"Hirata-kun . .. Did you change Akito's group?"

She asked him, a part of her desperately wanted to hear the word 'yes' from his mouth.

"I was about to ask you that." He replied in a low voice, his voice had changed a little.

Horikita approached them followed by Ayanokouji.

"If memory serves, this group was of Sudou and not of Akito right?" She asked in a slightly restless tone.

They both turned back towards her slowly.

She didn't change it either.

Both of them thought at once.

"Who changed it then?"

"Maybe we just remember wrong." Ichinose tried being optimistic.
"No, I can say for sure this was Sudou's group." But Hirata didn't hold any doubts.

The next group went ahead and took their position. Sudou was in it along with Ike, this group in particular had some outstanding athletes so things weren't looking good for Ike.

The race began and Sudou shot forward like a bullet. The guys from Class C were the best of their class, naturally they gave Sudou a run for his money.

He kept looking back but by the end he grabbed the first place of his group.

"What's happening? The groupings are messed up, this was Ike's and Yamauchi's group." Hirata was confused.

Why was there Sudou's name as participant in it? The races went by but there didn't seem to be any incongruence in further groupings.

"I think it was a mistake on our part. Rest of the groups seem alright to me." Ichinose broke the silence once again.

"I hope that is the case."

"Are you sure you didn't change the groupings?" Horikita asked once again.

"No, I am sure of it."

Now it was time for the girls 100m dash, Horikita and Ichinose left the group and went ahead. The groups with Ichinose and Kushida performed well, they didn't get first place but they were placed in top three.

Horikita took her position in the third lane, the other member from her class was Sakura Airi, Kinoshita was one of the girls present in her group. The other girl from Class C was a short haired blue girl Horikita didn't recognize.

"Ayanokouji-kun, do you feel what I do?"

For a moment Ayanokouji analyzed what Hirata wanted to say, then he nodded.

"This is the second time Horikita's grouping had Kinoshita in it, but not only her. The other girl from Class C is also an athletic one."
"You know her?"

"Yes, she is Mio Ibuki. According to rumors Ibuki is extremely athletic."

"I see."
"There is something we might've to investigate."

Ayanokouji recalled that name from the island exam; she was the leader of Class C in the test. But what else he noticed was that Hirata's tone was slowly changing; he was dropping the honorifics and sounding stern.

This festival was something Ayanokouji was looking forward to, as it would break many individuals and reveal what is there within them.

Chapter- 11

Chapter- 11

The start signal went off and young girls bolted down their respective lanes.

Horikita's reaction seemed slightly delayed, mostly because the existence of Kinoshita in her group distracted her. Horikita had exceptional athletic abilities, but Kinoshita had polished her own every day.

Naturally as they picked up their speed Kinoshita took the lead. But, what surprised Horikita more was the girl with short blue hair who chased her down with bloodthirsty eyes.

Around the middle of the race Horikita glanced back at Ibuki, the moment that happened the girl was chasing her nearly neck to neck with her. Panic struck her and the thought of losing crossed her mind.

I can't fall down to third position.

She spoke in her head.

In a few moments Horikita was overtaken, she realized that the girl who just crossed her wasn't trying to overtake her. It was Kinoshita that she was trying to catch.

Horikita ended up in third place by a short margin. Both the girls from Class C glanced at her over their shoulders and left the track.

"See you in the next event."

Horikita stood there, she looked towards the other side from her class. She wasn't ready to face them after such failure. But unfortunately, on the opposite side of her class she saw her brother.

He was monitoring the races as the student council secretary accompanied him. She could only imagine the disappointment he would have in her at this point.

She felt her soul damaged, her lips curled in pain. Third place was already pathetic, but the fact that her brother witnessed it was what made it feel even worse.

It took a little while for the other years to get done with their races.

Hirata and Ayanokouji had carefully witnessed all of the races, there wasn't any method to record the results except to memorize them.

"Did you notice a pattern?" Hirata asked Ayanokouji once the last race had ended.

"Yes, it seems like the grouping done by Class C is targeted at Horikita." Ayanokouji replied with the basic fact.

"Not only that, Ryuuen had been winning in his groups as well. He ran against the group which had Hideo Sotomura from our class."

"The vague possibility that they have our participation table seems to be expanding."

Hirata nodded slightly, he didn't want to admit it himself. But Ayanokouji said it for him.

"The next line up would be enough to deduce if that is actually the case."

Done with her race, Ichinose approached the two individuals.

"Hirata-kun, I have a feeling that Horikita-san is being targeted."

"Yes, we think so as well. Let's see if the same happens in the next race."

Horikita returned to the class but no one dared to approach her, she was oozing hostility.

"I don't think approaching her would be a good choice right now."
"Yeah." Ayanokouji agreed.

"It is time for the obstacle course race. You two should warm up." Ichinose suggested.

The first group took their place, but one more time the matchups seemed confusing.

"Why the hell are you here again?" Kaneda asked Akito once again.

"Look bro, if it is a gag thing then now is a good time to stop it." Akito said with a little irritation.

Kaneda, understanding the situation, closed his mouth and lost the race the way he was supposed to.

The groups went on, however the most interesting group was the one with Sudou in it. Shibata was present in it, alongside Sotomura from Class C.

Class A/C/D, all three of them had their best runners in the group. Sudou had seemed to have a slightly slow reaction to the start signal but he picked up the pace soon enough.

He ran, summoning all his might, but Shibata didn't lose him. Soon he overtook Shibata who seemed to be preserving stamina at this point, looking at how much he was enjoying it while Sudou was pouring the last of his life out.

It is safe to say that Shibata would've won if it was a sprint, but the obstacles made it more complicated than that.

"I think it is safe to conclude that someone has changed our participation table." Hirata announced in a low voice.

"Yes, in every event a few participants have been misplaced." Horikita agreed.

"But looking at the past nothing fatal had come out of the changes." Ichinose pointed out.

"That isn't the point. If it was changed without our noticing then it won't be far fetched to conclude that it has been leaked as well."

"..." They stayed silent for a moment. Students were slowly surrounding them, talking about it here might throw the class in a disarray.

"I will get going now, it seems like my group will start for the obstacle course race now." Ichinose left.

Ichinose' POV :

Unlike the 100m sprint, the obstacle course was more complicated. It required motor skills beside just speed, I was able to cross most of the obstacles with a suitable time during practice. As long as I stay focused I can do it.

I took my position in the fourth lane. A girl from Class B stood beside me, I recognized her from the Ball toss, she was the one with flowing purple hairs.

Now that I look closely at her, she is the same girl I concluded to be the shoplifter the other day.

[A/n: Just in case this happened in vol 1 if any of you forget.]

"I am Ichinose Honami, nice to meet you."

She looked at me for a second then replied.

"I am Masumi Kamuro."
"So Kamuro-san, what do you think about shoplifting?" I asked instinctively.

"Excuse me?"

"Eh, nevermind the race will start now."

Bang

Before she could reply the signal went off. Unlike me Kamuro was a fast runner, she took a considerable lead but her bigger frame was slowed down by the net.

I crossed the net as fast as I could but even then I wasn't able to close any significant distance between us. Once we were out of the net, Kamuro bolted down the balance beam.

She was literally bolting at this point, her overconfidence bit her back soon as she was thrown off balance and fell down.

"Tch."

Taking the chance I overtook her. In the sack race Kamuro was slowly catching up again, but the distance between us was still significant.

It was in the last 50m dash where she was able to reclaim first place. On crossing the finish line she sat down huffing.

"Well played." I extended my arm to her. Again after taking her moment of consideration she took my hand.

"You too."

I went back to the tents, at this point the sports festival had taken a lot out of me. I wasn't used to practising this hard everyday.

I was feeling thirsty, so I went ahead to drink some water as the other races proceeded.

"Woah! Horikita took a dive into the ground!"
"You stupid she collided with the other girl!"

I ran to the spectating area to see what happened. Far away one the race track Horikita and Kinoshita were one ground.

"What happened to them?!"
"Honami-chan, it seems they ran into each other." Mii chan reported.

The other students passed Horikita and Kinoshita, from the way both of them are dragging themselves it seems to be serious.

"Heh, she deserved it."

"Who said that?" The words left my mouth as I turned my head around.

Suddenly everyone went silent, how could they mock her when she is clearly being targeted like that?

"Everyone, I don't know if you have noticed it but she is our star player and she is being targeted by other classes. Please keep this in mind." I turned back after issuing a small warning.

Horikita had barely managed to get seventh place while Kinoshita finished last due to her injury.

"This seems bad." I muttered to myself.

When Horikita returned no one was approaching her again, this wasn't a good time to leave her alone.

But before I could walk up, Ayanokouji approached her, I joined them soon.

"I will compete even if I have to crawl," Horikita walked away after that declaration.

"How is Horikita-san doing?" I asked Ayanokouji.

"It seems serious, it will affect other events."
"We will need her for recommended participant events."
"Adapt." He left after saying that much.

The hurdle race repeated the pattern, besides a few groups were exchanged and the rest of them went as usual for boys.

As for girls it seems like Kinoshita-san didn't come for the next event, for some reason I don't feel very optimistic about that.

"That was an unfortunate 'accident'." Hirata stood beside me.

"Indeed and what is even worse is that there isn't anyone there to support her at a time like this."

"The disunity of our class is to blame partly, but Horikita has invited this situation for herself."

"I understand." It wasn't her fault that she was being targeted but the fact that no one was there to help her at a time like this was a product of her actions.

"Ryuuen has been winning all the events to this point, not only does he have the participation table of our class he also has a deep insight of other classes." Hirata said in a quiet tone.

"As much as I hate to admit it, if this is his plan then his performance has been splendid till now."

Chapter- 12

Chapter- 12Chapter- 12 (Sakyanagi's POV)(But uh third person narration)

Hurdle race was done, and now it was time for the Cavalry battle to commence. Arisu seated herself and put her cane on her lap.

Put on a good show for me. Ryuuen.

It was first year boys who were going to compete first. This was the last team battle between the Red team and White team.

Once the signal went off the A/D coalition closed their distance rapidly between them and their opponents. They were divided into two parts, Class D went against C and Class A went against B. But . ..

"Hey, hey don't give that look. Go beat them up first." A boy with long blonde hair tied into a pony sat on the top of his group.

"What?" Kanzaki was perplexed by the response. None of the Class B units engaged aggressively. Except one . .

"What are you saying, Hashimoto? Engage your units." Katsuragi said, losing his temper.

"Go ahead, Kanzaki, this is your only chance. Once you take down Ryuuen I will come to haunt you."

"Let's go." Kanzaki ordered his units away from Class B and got ready to charge at Class C.

It might seem like a better strategy to eliminate Class B units first to avoid an ambush in future. However, Kanzaki had witnessed the strength of Class C before it was better to aid Class D in their fight instead.

Katsuragi, bewildered by the situation, chased Kanzaki towards the C/D fight.

For a moment Ryuuen found himself surrounded by nearly eight units at once. His smile faded and he made a slightly distressed expression.

"Fufu. This will be fun to watch."

However, the next moment he suddenly turned towards Sakayanagi and his smile returned even wider and more disturbing than last time.

Ryuuen remembered his meeting which took place days before the sports festival. He was taking an evening stroll through the school alley when the guy suddenly showed up.

"Yo Ryuuen." Hashimoto interrupted him.

"What the hell do you want with me?"

"Nothing much, wanted to chat."
"Speak."
"You cancelled our meeting the other day without notice, but nevermind that. I will get straight to the point, Sakayanagi is planning to play with you soon."
"Do you have your phone with you?"
"Huh? No, why?"
"So you're telling me this without her knowing huh?"
"... Yes." If Hashimoto had brought his phone with him he would run the risk of getting tracked using the GPS system the school has available.

"Kukuku, you don't need to tell me that. If she wants to attack me then let her come at me, your warning just spoils the taste of it."

"You are twisted in the wrong way."

[Back to the present]

"Stay out of this," Ryuuen commanded Katsuragi, who was about to attack.

While the other horsemen of the A/D coalition kept their distance they still targeted Ryuuen.

"Sudou, was it? When I stepped on you earlier it looked quite painful."

"..."

Sakayanagi couldn't hear them from this distance. But, she had an active imagination. It was easy to guess what Ryuuen was trying to do there, he didn't appear to be panicking even in a situation like this and was carrying out his act perfectly. Too perfect.

Doubts germinated in her head but she didn't want to spoil the show so she dismissed those thoughts for now.

"I have asked my men to stay out of this. Let's settle this one on one." Ryuuen provoked Sudou.

"Fine. You asked for it! Heard that? No one gets between us!"

Kanzaki and Hirata gazed at Sudou bitterly, it didn't seem like they would be able to talk him out of this. Kanzaki nodded at Hirata slowly and left them.

"Follow Kanzaki till we join you back-" Hirata ordered the rest of the Class D units. But he was interrupted mid sentence when Sudou suddenly charged into the enemy.

Kanzaki gave us a resentful look as he saw the battle unfold between Ryuuen and Sudou.

"Uraah!!" With a suitable bellow Sudou rammed into the Ryuuen's unit. But they withstood the impact.

"Haha, is that all you have?"
Ryuuen's unit was by no means inferior to Sudou's unit. The half Japanese guy was able to withstand any and every attack by Sudou so naturally the fight boiled down to Hirata and Ryuuen.

"You are nothing compared to my Albert."

Ryuuen dodged Hirata's disoriented attacks and provoked Sudou at the same time.

"Sudou, you need to calm down. I can't target his headband like this."

"Not yet?"

The best of burden sounded pained, Sakayanagi felt remorse for him to have such fine physical abilities but such low intelligence.

She analyzed both the units calmly, Ryuuen's unit was made up of tough guys. The infamous Albert had equal powers if not more than Sudou, the other two supporting Ryuuen's chariot were also strong but on the other hand the two supporting Sudou didn't seem to be anyone with notable abilities.

[A/n: Mind you one of the guys is Ayanokouji.]

But that wasn't the only trick there, the game depended on maneuverability as well. Hirata was doing his best to snatch Ryuuen's headband, but judging from the number of times Ryuuen's headband has escaped near death experience it would be fair to say it has been tinkered.

Each time Hirata failed to capture the headband his irritation grew and he attacked more aggressively. Finally giving the opening Ryuuen was waiting for, he snatched away Hirata's headband effortlessly and triumphed in the duel.

Sakayanagi shook her head in disappointment.

"Kanzaki, take him down. Don't go for the headband." With those parting words Hirata left the field.

"Pathetic."

Ryuuen glanced towards Class B units, none of them showed any signs of moving.

"Line up!" Rest of the units that Ryuuen commanded formed an arrow shape behind him while his unit acted as the arrowhead.

"Now plunder."

The whole body of 4 units moved together, anything that came in it's way would be destroyed immediately.

This kind of strategy was never useful, but the exceptional strength of Ryuuen's unit had the potential to make it work while the other units covered the weak area that was the rear of the unit.

Kanzaki didn't expect Ryuuen to go down without a fight either, he had planned and Shibata had communicated it with the rest of the units.

"Take your positions." Every unit behind Kanzaki dispersed to the side; only Kanzaki's unit stood in Class C's way.

"Now guys . .. .. Run." Ryuuen was strong, but Shibata and others triumphed when it came to speed.

Any contact with Ryuuen would lead to failure of this strategy.

Class D units were exceptionally weak and Kanzaki accepted that fact. He used them solely for the purpose of removing the rear units following Ryuuen from behind.

However, the truth was that the opening wouldn't last for long, Class C units would demolish D units soon.

Once the units were separated, without wasting any time Kanzaki started attacking Ryuuen with the rest of his Class A units.

"Do you think you baboons can take me out together?"
"Yes."

Four units surrounded him in all directions and rammed into him at once in sync. They had practiced this on Sudou during practice sessions.

But unlike Akito and Ayanokouji, the two rear players of Ryuuen's unit didn't go down on collision.

"I will break your knees if any of your f*kers kneel." The knees which had just lost strength had a newfound source of energy to them now.

"Keep attacking, don't fall back!"

It took them three full collisions but at last Ryuuen's unit fell down.

"Tch bastard, you have done it now." Ryuuen glared at Komiya who was the reason they collapsed.

Kanzaki took a deep breath, for a moment he had panicked even four against one there. Shibata below him buckled suddenly, reacting fast. Kanzaki shifted his weight to the two players behind him and held Shibata.

"I forgot about the heavy recoil you were facing."
"Yeah bro, it is like I ran into a tree at full speed. Thrice."

The other Class C units were now done with the decoy units sent by Kanzaki, one of them had a headband in his hands. Hashimoto was approaching them with Class B units.

"Now is not the time to fall."

"Yeah, this will end soon. Let's give it our all."

Outnumbered tragically, Class A fought valiantly until all of their units were eliminated. Before being eliminated they had gathered three headbands but White team had won the match.

"That was a great show, Kanzaki-kun, Ryuuen-kun." Arisu felt amused.

From the beginning of this event she didn't plan on winning the festival. It was a festival and she wanted to enjoy it to the fullest.

Without a moment of tranquility first year girls assembled for the next match.

The match began and all the Class C horsemen zeroed upon Horikita Suzune. None of them bothered to attack Class A at all.

Picking up on the threat, Ichinose and Karuizawa dashed to the rescue but they were intercepted by Kamuro Masumi's unit.

She was chosen as jockey for Class B.

"Fufu, even when combined those two can't match Kamuro-san." Sakayanagi said in a proud tone.

Sakyanagi only planned to play with Ryuuen, to do the same with the girls wouldn't result in any fun and end in a mundane fashion. At this stage Ryuuen had a better show packed for her.

Ichinose and Karuizawa clawed on Kamuro repeatedly but to no avail. Unlike Kamuro their units weren't made up of athletic students so their mobility was restricted.

"Ichinose, you run to the rescue I'll stall her."

Meanwhile ganged upon by four horsemen Horikita wasn't eliminated immediately, they took their time to humiliate her.

"Look girl, this isn't personal or anything." Ibuki shrugged.

Disguised as an attempt to snatch the headband they were hitting Horikita from all sides. It wasn't actually a damaging hit but it was a humiliating one.

"Horikita-san!" When they noticed Ichinose closing distance upon them they swiftly devoured Horikita.

"Ah!"

Once she lost her headband a horseman of Class C fell down on Horikita's collapsing unit.

Ichinose stopped in her tracks when Ibuki turned her attention towards her. She was the next target now.

Both the teams fought each other furiously, but White team simply overpowered the Red team. Defeated, they returned to their classes.

Third person POV:

Ichinose went away to drink some cold water from the cooler near the medical team. One after the other events drained her stamina.

The moment the rest of the girls entered the tent they were welcomed by a very angry roar.

"I will beat that bastard to death!!" Sudou was stomping his way to Class C. His bottle up rage was now brimming out of him, Ryuuen's psychological attacks are showing their effect.

But Hirata taking action quickly got in his way.

"Sudou, stop."
"No, you come with me and we beat that jerk together." Sudou crossed Hirata without any signs of stopping but Hirata grabbed his hand.

"Even if we do that it would solve nothing. The class is drowning in chaos, you aren't supposed to fuel it."

At this point Sudou had gained the attention of most of the students in his vicinity.

"Shut it! If you don't want to come then stay here I will handle them myself."
"You will die if they return the favour," Hirata didn't hold back.

"I understand you are afraid. Now, stay back." Sudou snatched his arm out of Hirata's grip forcefully.

"Your attitude invites disorder. Have you forgotten what happened last time you beat up Class C students?" Yukimura interjected cuttingly.

"No matter if you win or lose, if you resort to violence you will just take down the class with yourself again." Hirata added.

"SHUT UP!"

"Don't you see this isn't the right way?"

A dull slap echoed through the tent. Sudou had punched Hirata in the face but Hirata had parried it away. Sudou's eyes were bloodthirsty and he didn't plan on stopping.

Hirata barely dodged the next punch.

"What's happening here?" Chabashira intervened in the situation which had now heated towards a brawl.

"We are sparring.. . . To warm up." Hirata excused but his words didn't sound convincing.

"Bastard you dare ignore me!!" At last Sudou's punch landed on the distracted Hirata.

He was still standing, thanks to the stance he took.

"10 points from your class score has been deducted for internal violence." Chabashira-sensei announced.

"What the hell man, Sudou stop this!"

"Bruh someone stop him."

The students who were silent from fear till now sang like birds once the prospect of losing their hard earned points came into view.

"This maniac is bringing us down."

"Please stop it! Get some help."

Sudou was being slandered continuously by the mob. Ayanokouji looked around for Ichinose but he couldn't find her.

Sudou stood there frozen in disbelief, slowly everyone grew silent when they saw him still.

"I .. .I am trying my best for the class."
"At this point it isn't helping us," Yuukimura was the perfect example of a discouraging father.

"Yes, it was better if you weren't here." Someone from the crowd said.

Mob mentality is truly frightening.

Ayanokouji thought in his head.

"Fine! This thing can go to hell. You all win it now!" Sudou sent a table flying and left the tent. One last time he glanced at Horikita who sat there defeated but then walked back to the dormitory.

Chabashira witnessing the mayhem made a slightly bitter expression. She glanced towards Ayanokouji once but he averted his gaze.

"Who did this?" A certain voice broke the silence. It was Hirata.

"I am asking you politely. Whoever leaked the participation table prostrate yourself now and we can talk this out." Hirata requested but his voice didn't match with his harmless offer.

Everyone stood in silence, taken off balance by Hirata's sudden change. But no one dared to speak, they were waiting for the traitor to speak.

Karuizawa gulped once, and her meeting with Ayanokouji yesterday flashed in her head.

"H-Hirata-kun." All the eyes turned towards her and for a moment Hirata's heart froze.

She was the one on the island who found the evidence, she was the only one who knew the third VIP, she also had most of the information on the participation table. The thought of his closest acquaintance being a traitor depleted Hirata's soul.

But why would she report herself on the island? Why would she get herself into the mess on a cruise ship? And above all it doesn't make sense she would just come out as a traitor at this point. Drowned in confusion Hirata shut off his head and waited for Karuizawa to speak.

"Hirata-kun . .. . Ichinose was the only one who had the participation table right?"

[A/n: Thanks to my friend Dall-kun for the new cover of the book. Also sorry for any mistakes I made in naming or classes I don't have an editor so fast updates mess up a little. ]

Chapter- 13

Chapter- 13 (Ichinose's POV)

Cold water surely refreshes the system. I returned from the cooler that the medical team had. The sports festival will be a memory I will recall later in my life.

I joined my classmates once I was done drinking. The tent was unusually silent, the air around me felt heavy.

"Who did it?" I turned towards the owner of the voice. It was Hirata.

"I am asking you politely. Whoever leaked the participation table prostrate yourself now and we can talk this out."

What? Is he going to confront the traitor publicly?

After a few moments of silence Karuizawa stepped forward and said.

"H-Hirata-kun. .."

She couldn't be the traitor, she was the one that was targeted on the cruise ship after all.

"Hirata-kun . .. Ichinose was the only one who had the participation table right?"

Huh? Suddenly I found myself at the center of attention as everyone turned towards me.

"You told me only she has the actual table and even you don't know full details." Hirata stood there considering her words in disbelief.

"Yes, you are right, Ichinose-san was the only one who had the table. But we shouldn't doubt her." Kushida intervened.

"But .. you know Kushida. No one else could've leaked the table because-"
"I didn't leak the table. What are you saying Karuizawa-san?"
"I agree with Karuizawa, you were the only one who had the table since no one else saw the table. You are the only one who can do it." Yuukimura's tone was belligerent.

"Yukimura-kun, why would I even do something like that?"
"That is what I want to ask you, why would you sell out your classmates like that?"

"What-"
"Did Ichinose-san really do that?"

"I don't think she would ever do that."
"I mean she is the only one you know."

Students had started whispering and questioning my loyalty already. I shook my head and set myself back again.

"Ichinose-san, you were the leader on the island . . .. . . . you were the one who was with Ryuuen on the cruise ship in the end . . . . you are the only one who had the participation table."

Hirata's eyes were full of hostility. His cognitive bias was highlighting the facts that supported his argument in his head.

"Hirata-kun you know me I won't do that!" Exasperation leaked out of my voice.

"I know you? .. .Yes, you are the only one capable of hiding this long. To think you were hidden in plain sight..."
"N-No."

The background whispers of the mob were against me and Hirata's internal thoughts were driving towards the same conclusion.

"Ichinose, we will settle this once the festival ends. I don't want any more penalties. For now admit that you are the traitor."

Everyone grew silent, the moment of confession was there.

"For the last time, I am not the traitor!" I yelled and ran out of the tent.

Running away again huh? Didn't I run away from the world to hide in this school? Shaking my head I went into the girls restroom.

I locked the door and sat down holding my head in my hands. Keeping the table to myself ran the risk of being targeted like this, but I never thought my class would lose their trust in me instantly.

Ryuuen's repeated attacks have shaken them all up, it isn't their fault. I tried to convince myself.

In the darkness my mind blanked out for a while. Soon I lost track of how much time had passed, I snapped back when I heard a knock on the door.

I was afraid to think that my classmates are here to get me.

"H-Honami-chan?" Mii chan said in a scared voice.

I slowly opened the door, and she stood there alone. Small drops of tears welled up in her eyes, my little sister's crying face flashed before my eyes.

I came out and stood before her, I wanted to cry as well but looking at her crying now being weak was not an option.

"Honami-chan .. I know you didn't sell us out. You would never do that."

She wasn't lying, those words came from her heart. I felt relieved on hearing that.

"The class . . please do something Honami-chan." She hugged me tightly like a scared child. I patted her head slowly.

"Don't worry Mii-chan, big sister is here. It will be alright."

On hearing my words she slowly parted. I nodded at her slightly and she nodded back.

"I should get going, the next event might be starting."
"The 200m dash has already ended."
"What? The break has already started?" We were supposed to get a few minutes of break between the individual event and the recommended events.
"Yes, Shinohara-san is also looking for you along with Matsushita-san. We didn't have phones so finding you was hard."

That means I was disqualified for the events. Our class would have lost a fair share of points in absence of Sudou.

"I must get going, Mii-chan." I dashed out of the restroom and ran back to my class.

On reaching the tent I looked around, it seemed like Sudou hadn't returned yet. Horikita and Ayanokouji were also missing from the spot, perhaps they went ahead to treat her leg.

Hirata sat on a chair, girls flocked around him but he stayed silent. From a distance I saw Kushida chatting with her friends, she noticed me and our eyes met for a brief moment.

She closed her eyes and smiled at me, as if none of this was connected to her. She has tactfully thrown the role of traitor on me, but right now making our situation better should be my priority.

I looked around, I saw a temporary cottage erected. That is where Koenji has been the whole time in this exam. The situation was desperate, so I didn't hesitate to approach him.

"Koenji-kun." His back faced me as he ran his fingers through his hair looking at his reflection in the mirror.

"How can I help you?"

"Please, participate in recommended events, even one would be enough." I pleaded. Recommended events held far more value than the events till now so if Koenji could win even one for us it would improve our odds dramatically.

"I am afraid that isn't possible, my poor health doesn't allow it."
"Koenji-kun, I am begging you. We need your help only once." I must be looking pathetic, but if it could help my class I don't care how pathetic I look.

"Strawberry girl, you should go to the nurse's office, your left leg's condition is deteriorating."

"What?"
He stayed silent. How did he know my left leg was slightly damaged? While jumping off the balance beam my left leg landed on a wrong angle so it has been painful.

"Don't look jumbled, you begged me for help so I blessed you with a little. I am a very kind man." Koenji said the last part to his reflection in the mirror.

Following a linear fashion in life wasn't an option for him.

"Now, get out of my sight. You lack the charm, woman." The first time he called me a woman, the feeling of discomfort rose a little in me.

"..." I walked out of the cottage, convincing him to act is a pointless crusade.

Outside the cottage stood another unusual figure.

"Things look rough for you." Nagumo Senpai said.

"Yes, the whole class has fallen into chaos, I don't know what to do." I didn't hide my confusion.

"It is in chaos that the true identity of an individual surfaces, that is the time when true leaders emerge. Chaos is a ladder, climb it."
"But . . . ."

"I will be observing you from a distance, grasping your potential as the student council member of the next generation."
"I understand, I will do my best, Senpai."

"Haha, don't sound that tense. You have my support, everything will be alright." With his words of encouragement Nagumo senpai left.

Heeding to Koenji's advice I walked towards the nurse's office to get my left leg fixed. It wasn't affecting my performance much. However, if left unattended it can cause me problems.

Chapter- 14 Shifting Gears 1

Chapter- 14 (Shifting gears -1) Miscalculations

Ayanokouji's POV:

Class D made Ichinose Honami as their traitor, till now I have only read about mob mentality. Now that I witness it, I feel fascinated.

Once Ichinose left Hirata took a seat and questioned his life choices, Horikita who stood at a distance seemed to be doing the same. Leaving her for later I went to Hirata.

"It is time for the 200m dash, you should get going."

Hirata didn't answer me, he got up and left. Once I was done with the 200m dash I returned back and approached Horikita.

"There's a little over an hour left until Sudou's turn, huh?"

The dash continued for the second- and third-year students, followed by a fifty-minute break. If Sudou didn't return before the break ended, it'd be checkmate.

Ichinose was also gone but I didn't have any plans of rescuing her right now. With our ace in the hole gone, we'd never win that is why Sudou takes the priority. Only one person in our class could get to him. I wondered if Horikita understood just how vital her role was.

"Horikita, do you know what happened with Sudou?"

"I saw it. He realized what a disappointment he was, then ran away. What bothers me is that the traitor has roped Ichinose into a trap."

"Well...yeah, I guess that's true."

"Why are you here? You're not going to request that I bring Sudou or Ichinose back, are you?"

"If you already know, then don't ask. Do you understand you're the only one who can help?" I inquired.

"I don't think so. There are other people who can do something. There's no way I possibly could," she said.

Was she serious? Yeah, she probably was. She had no idea that Sudou had a crush on her.

"Besides, I'm not exactly in a position to worry about other people right now," Horikita added.

She was indeed suffering. She had a lot to deal with on her own. I understood her feelings. Besides, pretty much no one wanted to go find Sudou. They'd abandoned him, although they knew that he could save us in the sports festival. Everyone's trust in him had evaporated.

Unlike Sudou there was a minority of girls who were ready to defy the judgement of class against Ichinose and went on her rescue without thinking twice. For Sudou, Horikita needed to grow up to bring out his full potential.

"Here's how I see it," I said. "It was the three idiots who approached you when the sports festival began, they were ready to follow you but look at where they are now. You weren't able to handle them and neither yourself, not only are you a useless leader but a burden of an individual."

"That's an awful thing to say. I'm sorry I got hurt, but I had bad luck. Some things you can't control, right? As for Sudou, he must mature himself."

"Wrong. It is your job to help him mature as a leader. You blame your injury on bad luck and such delusional factors, but in reality you don't realize a thing."

"Don't make fun of me. I understand the seriousness of the situation. Clearly, we have a traitor who leaked our participation table to Ryuuen. The traitor in the class has successfully played Ichinose into submission." Horikita said, but those were obvious points that even Ike could notice.

"What else have you noticed?"

"What else? I know that Ryuuen-kun provoked Sudou-kun."

"That's right. Even with all the information in the world on Ryuuen's side, Sudou—our class's MVP—was still nearly undefeatable. So, Ryuuen needled and provoked him on purpose, until he got Sudou to drop out."

"Yeah, and that's why our class is in shambles right now."

"Have you noticed anything else?"

"Wait, you can't mean... You want to speculate?" asked Horikita.

"Do I think that Ryuuen-kun set a trap for me? Yes, I certainly do. I guess he told Kinoshita-san to trip me. But it's hard to blatantly, deliberately cause injury when we're under such heavy scrutiny. I can't imagine Ryuuen and his team would intentionally injure me so badly I couldn't satisfactorily continue with the competition."

If I had wanted to, I could have offered her evidence that the injury was certainly intentional. But that wasn't really important. Instead I said,

"How long do you plan to be useless, Horikita?"

Unless I took drastic measures, Horikita Suzune would never wake up.

"On what grounds do you call me useless?"

"I'm calling you useless because you are useless."

"How dare you? I'm a highly capable student and athlete. I have the utmost confidence that I can triumph over any of these good-for-nothings. Besides, since the information on our class already leaked, isn't it too late for us to do anything? It's not just me—we're all powerless here. So, why label me useless?"

"If you were an ordinary student, it would be fine for you to say that. But that's not the case, is it? it is time you see the big picture by now."

"That's why I asked you for evidence!" Horikita shouted.

Our classmates turned toward us to see what was going on.

"'We have a traitor who leaked our participation table.'" I repeated Horikita's words back at her.

"'Ryuuen-kun provoked Sudou-kun,' 'I guess he told Kinoshita-san to trip me.' It's certainly true that you can't do anything about those things—because you didn't do anything about them. And, as long as you continue to do nothing, nothing is going to change. I don't know what Horikita Manabu expects from you, but I am sure he didn't expect this excuse for a leader."

She became a helpless lamb on the very mention of her brother.

"That's... But, what could I possibly...?"

"You can either prioritize improving your own ranking while Sudou remains absent, or you can let your ranking plummet while Sudou returns and helps pull the class forward. Which of those best serves Class D?" I asked.

"There's no need to answer that, is there? You aren't nearly as valuable as Sudou right now. It's time you get the fact that you're completely useless through your skull. Sudou's methods are clumsy, sure, but he's contributed more to our class than anyone else in this festival. And he's been trying his absolute hardest to win. Is it really okay for you to give up on him just because you claim you can't afford to care about other people? You're going to let him sit this out?"

Horikita had to understand that much. Even if what I said hurt her, she needed to wake up. I wanted her to acknowledge exactly what she had to do from this point on.

"You are the reason the class is in this state in the first place, Sudou had endured the last of Ryuuen's provocations. The time he actually lost his temper was when he saw you being targeted, had you not been in this trouble Sudou would've been here to attend the recommended events and you would've been in a condition to compete as well."

"This is so obvious that even an elementary school kid should get it. There's only one thing we can do to prepare a counterattack."

Ryuuen had strategically taken out Sudou and Ichinose, which meant that we had to strategically get them back. However, Ichinose's contribution to all this wasn't nearly as much as Horikita and Sudou, these two individuals needed to be fixed first.

"You're throwing away a chance to obtain a weapon that belongs to you, and you alone," I said.

"A weapon for me alone?"

"If you're aiming for Class A, there's a limit to how much you can do on your own. Right now, you're in a situation where you can't do much of anything. You're going to face more and more exams like this in the future. When those take place, Sudou will definitely become a valuable asset. For you to make use of that asset, what should you do right now? Pray that your injured leg heals miraculously?"

Telling her directly that Sudou liked her won't solve anything, she needed to understand his true importance as a weapon, he is an indispensable asset.

"I..."

"I'll let you think about it. That's my only advice."

If my words didn't reach her even now then there might not be any hope left for her.

The break between the individual events and the recommended event was around fifty minutes long. Hirata, Horikita, Ichinose and Sudou all four of the individuals were missing. After twenty minutes or so Hirata returned to the tent, everyone gathered around him so I wasn't able to grasp his situation completely.

Hirata and Ichinose, both are individuals I didn't know about thoroughly.

Hirata seems to have a past where he witnessed a near death experience of his friends due to bullying, but that alone doesn't explain his allotment to Class D. It seems like there is more to it and as the Sports festival is progressing his true nature is coming to the light.

As for Ichinose, her methods of operating were polar opposite to mine. She had reached the top of our class by taking just actions and caring for everyone. I had my doubts about her true nature, her allotment in Class D was still a mystery to me. The trust our class put in her was going to prove detrimental sooner or later. Ryuuen's attacks provided me with an opening to get hold of the moral fiber of Ichinose Honami, as well as reduce any chances of our class developing blind faith in her in future.

Pondering over the various topics I roamed around the campus, searching for a certain individual. The students were spread all over the campus, while a few had their lunch in the cafeteria as they usually did. The school had piled up a mountain of lunch boxes for us. From the look of it, they appeared to be high quality catering brought from outside the campus.

I took one of them and ate my lunch. My body will need fuel for the events to come. Koenji walked out of his cottage, grabbed a lunch box and went back humming.

Once I was done eating, I took off to search for the certain individual once more.

It was around the nurse's office where I found him talking to Horikita Suzune.

"Do you understand the situation of Class D?" He asked.

"I am starting to," Horikita replied after a brief pause. Without any further conversation both the parties parted ways.

I stood on the path Horikita Manabu was treading on. He stopped a few steps away from me.

"It's been a while."

"Yes, I don't expect a part two of that day." The only time I had met Manabu was to protect her little sister from his wrath.

"President. Do you know this sour looking kid?" The girl walking beside Manabu spoke in an exaggerated manner.

"Ayanokouji, I would like to have a small talk with you if you don't mind." He said, completely ignoring my sparse humour.

Or did he actually want a part two?

"P-President?" I assumed it was better to ignore the girl in our background.

"I don't mind, but let's move to a less crowded place."

We moved to a secluded area in the school.

"You can go ahead if you want to." Manabu said to the girl accompanying him.

"I will stay here until you are done."

Horikita turned to me and spoke.

"The student council has received reports of the results from the island test and the cruise ship test. In the history of ANHS not many classes have reached above the score of 250 in the island test, but it seems like you have surpassed them altogether."

"To think you would get your hands on the results, just how much do you know exactly?"

"Individual actions from the test remain unclear, that is why I would like you to tell me a little about it if you don't mind." Manabu seemed to be interested in the way I obtained the scores.

"That reassures me."

"The first years might not grasp it, but your scores on the island were truly exceptional. The homeroom teachers who had seen this happen before would understand the true magnitude of it."

On listening to his words I recalled the result announcement of the island test, before announcing Class D's result Mashima sensei got lost for a moment and read the numbers twice to be sure of it.

"You are overestimating me, it was your sister and Ichinose Honami who outsmarted the other classes, not me."

"I would like to believe that, but on the last day you retired as the leader and appointed a new leader Sakura Airi. How do you explain that?"

"So you even know about that, just how much pull does the student council have?"

"I know that you were the one who outsmarted Dragon group and sent the real name of VIP as well, but you don't need to worry only the exam community and I know about that. Well Secretary Tachibana as well."

"I used to think the student bodies were decorative, but just what is the student council of this school?"

"Student council, is nothing significant. It is the individuals that make it what it is."

Said like the true council president.

"..." I stayed silent for a while trying to grasp how much he knows about me. If this is the case then it won't be far fetched to conclude he would've noticed the discrepancy in my resume and student report as well.

"Are you interested in joining the student council?" He asked me out of nowhere.

"B-But president, we only have one post left in the council."

"No, I will pass." Joining it would only further complicate my life.

"Huh?! You are passing on the chance to become the vice president of the student council?!" Tachibana exclaimed her mind out.

I have underestimated the information Horikita Manabu had about me, but then again why would he reach out to me?

"You seem to be rather fixated on me, would you like to race against me in the relay race? Although, you would've to sacrifice your chance for first place in it."

"What the hell are you saying?!" Tachibana wailed.

"Why do you love your peaceful life so much?"

Manabu and Tachibana spoke at the same time, he gave her one stern look and at last she shut her mouth.

"Why do you love your peaceful life so much?" Manabu asked.

"Huh? I am asking you to race against me, that wouldn't serve the purpose you state."

"The results of island test and the VIP test would be dawning upon the other class leaders by now, naturally they would come to hunt the mastermind in Class D,"

It wasn't only me, Manabu Horikita has been observing the first year as a whole.

"I can understand you would want to create discrepancies in your status by making incongruent records, but why do you want to stay low so desperately?" He asked, looking straight into my eyes.

I stayed silent for a few moments, to stress the importance of what came next.

"I just want to spend my days here quietly."

Manabu took his time to analyze the sentence twice.

"Your unambitious attitude confuses me."

"Well you have a chance to learn more about me."

"..." With a slight nod Manabu left the place. It wasn't said, but he wasn't going to race against me for free. Well at this point I am also interested to know his motives.

I looked at the time, it was already time for the recommended participants event to begin. I walked back to the tents, Sudou and Horikita were still missing.

But what I saw next took me a little time to comprehend.

"Did I make a miscalculation?" I muttered to myself.

Chapter- 15 Shifting gears 2. A loud whisper

Chapter- 15 Shifting gears 2. A loud whisper

Once the Obstacle course race ended, I went back towards the dormitory. It will take them a little time to get done with the rest of the races.

It has all been going according to plan till now, I have won all the individual events myself, this time I didn't try to even hide that there is a traitor in Class D. Once their confusion reaches the brim I will go ahead and coin the fate of Ichinose Honami.

However, there is one thing that has been bothering me since the 100m dash began.

"Tch." Unconsciously I made the sound. I strolled further to find Kinoshita waiting for me behind the dormitory building.

She gave me an irritating smile, why does she keep forgetting that I don't like people smiling around me?

"G-Good afternoon Ryuuen-san-" I kicked her leg and she toppled before she could complete the sentence.

"You know what you have to do right?"

"Yes." She said, showing her ugly smile.

Baam

I stomped down with all my might.

"~Ahhh~"

What was that? I looked around to find the source of the moan I just heard.

"~Ah~" I looked at Kinoshita, she was still smiling.

No, she needs to look mentally disturbed and frightened or else the school might see through her act. It is a pleasant surprise, after all I had some bottled up frustration within me after all.

Baam

"~Nyaa~" The hell?

Baam

"~Ahhh~"

Baam

"~Ouch~" This girl is twisted in a wrong way. Each time I stomped down she made an intoxicated expression. If I keep doing this I will break her shin before fear strikes her.

I crouched down, grabbing her collar and I brought her face near mine.

"Know this, if the school finds out about this. Then forget about the private points deal." I said looking directly into her eyes.

She snapped back to reality and fear dawned upon her. Good. I lifted her tracksuit a little to check her injury.

"This should do it." I muttered.

I pulled her up by her collar and wrapped her arm around my shoulder. We walked to the nurse's office in haste.

"Scream like you are dying." I whispered in her ear as we entered the nurse's office.

"AArgh! My leg!"

"Get help." We both walked into the office and I threw her on a bed nearby.

"Aaauchh . ." I guess she is feeling the pain this time.

A nurse approached her to fix things up.

"What happened to you?" She asked her.

"I. . ," She started speaking but then I glared at her.

"Aargh, help please me get. . ." Nice. That sounds disoriented.

"She is frightened, it seems like she has a severe injury in her shin." Breaking different bones since childhood, I picked up the names of a few.

"It seems like she has suffered a hairline fracture in the shin."

"Uh, ok."

"No it isn't okay, how did it happen? You will have to write a report on it, young man."

"Sure." I said, trying to suppress my smile.

It took me a few minutes but I made up a cool story.

"There, done."

"So someone ran into her huh."

"Yes, Kinoshita is a star player of our class. This is an attempt to give her a career ending injury so that it sabotages our class."

"Oh, my. How cruel, you should report it to the school."

"I will very soon."

With that I ended the discussion and left the office. 200m dash followed the same pattern like before, I had easily bagged the first place but still there was a mess.

Returning to the tent of my class I took my seat, Albert stood behind it like a loyal dog.

After resting for a few minutes I went to the Class D's tent. It was going to be fun.

On entering I found the whole class silent, Hirata sat down on a folding chair holding his head.

"Yo, Hirata. Did Sudo leave to take a dump or what?"

"..." He stood up but didn't answer me. My eyes roved around the room, it seems like Sudou and Ichinose are also missing.

"Why the long face, is the party over already?"

Horikita wasn't around, she must be feeling utterly defeated. On a usual day she would bite back a dog who barked at her. But today wasn't a usual day in her life.

"I must say, you have outsmarted us this time, Ryuuen. But before the next exam I will find the traitor and then we will fight on equal terms."

"What, a traitor?"

"Don't act dumb, I know you have our participation table. But now I won't let it repeat again." He made a ghastly expression. I would've disregarded his words but they seemed to carry some weight behind them.

"I didn't know you were capable of making such a cute face."

"Look forward to our next match, Ryuuen."

"Kukuku, very well."

Our discussion ended there. Kushida should be done with her part by now. On entering the nurse's office I found Class D homeroom teacher, Sae Chabashira sitting near the bed of Kinoshita. She was talking to the nurse I met earlier.

"You should take measures accordingly." By the time I came the discussion had ended.

A school official backing up the claim would make a better impression on the teacher than me narrating the incident. Kushida stood beside them.

"I am sorry to hear about Kinoshita." Chabashira said to me, she didn't sound sorry in the least.

"I want Horikita here, if she isn't here soon then I will have to report her to the school now."

"I will do that, please wait a little."

"I am going out for a little once, in ten minutes I will be back. She better be here by then."

I went out of the nurse's office and took a small stroll, imagining the face Horikita will make when she submits to me.

But. . . the thought crossed my mind again and uneasiness hit me.

When I obtained the participation table I had put Kaneda and other unathletic morons in Sudou's group, at the same time I put my best people against chimps from Class D.

However, Sudou's group was changed in all the races. This Akito guy was there and he collected the points instead of Sudou, while Sudou was transferred to the group which had the fastest student from my class.

This was a very small change, anyone who didn't know the participation table thoroughly won't notice it. Kushida checked the roster once again on the last day but it was still the same.

If there is someone who changed it again without my noticing then they could've saved most of the individuals that I targeted from Class D, however it didn't seem like they did it.

It was a big threat but at the same time it's actual magnitude was nearly zero, it felt as if they did it to make me aware of their existence by making a loud whisper.

Chapter- 16 Shifting gears 3. A step ahead

Chapter- 16 Shifting gears 3. A step ahead

As per Koenji's advice, I walked to the nurse's office. Maybe my pain will improve if I apply an ointment to it.

On entering the office, I found an assembly of rather odd individuals.

The first person that caught my attention was Ryuuen, he was accompanied by Kushida. Horikita stood opposite to them and Chabashira sat on a chair beside her with a slightly bitter expression.

On a bed near them Kinoshita was lying, her right leg was bandaged tightly. Looking at her injury, suddenly I wasn't feeling pain in my leg anymore.

What is going on here? The question crossed my mind.

For a moment they all looked at me, but then resumed their conversation.

"She denies it, sensei. Besides, even if Kinoshita did call Suzune's name, what's the big deal? That doesn't constitute foul play. It was probably a cry of desperation, born from a desire to win. I mean, Kinoshita has way

more spirit than anyone else. She's strong-willed and hates to lose. That's not a crime," said Ryuuen. Judging from the atmosphere, it appears that he is trying to rope in Horikita.

"Um...Kinoshita-san, Ryuuen-kun, I think this is all just bad luck. I can't imagine that Horikita-san would deliberately hurt her opponent."

Hurt her opponent? They can't be seriously blaming her for Kinoshita's injury. Horikita would never do that. But then . . .

I thought hard, trying to find solid evidence against it but I stood there in silence witnessing the conversation between Kushida and Ryuuen unfold.

"But Horikita-san said that she definitely wouldn't let me win! She said that!" Kinoshita yelled.

"Don't you think your desire not to lose just got to you? I mean, I think that Horikita-san was really upset when she fell. I think she was just trying her best," said Kushida.

Out of all people Kushida was arguing against Ryuuen? It would be hard to convince myself that this wasn't already scripted by them.

Horikita was enduring it all in silence, from the look on her face I can say she also understands that this is a scheme to trap her.

"I can't forgive Horikita-san for this. Now I have to take a break from track and field practice," she said.

"Don't you feel any shame at all?" Horikita asked.

"Is lying like this to entrap someone fun for you? Or did Ryuuen-kun devise all this? I can't imagine it was coincidental that he just happened to show up right now." Horikita tried to wrestle for control of the conversation.

"So, you're saying it's my fault that Kinoshita got hurt?" Ryuuen asked her.

"You really are a piece of work, aren't you?"

"Please. You messed with Sudou-kun earlier. Don't pretend you forgot about that. You're just trying to use the same trick this time around."

"I had nothing to do with that. It's ridiculous to try and tie those things together, anyway." Ryuuen wasn't about to admit anything.

"It's clear you did this, isn't it? You bumped into Kinoshita deliberately. It's an open-and- shut case. There's no room for any further debate, so let's report this to the

higher-ups right away." Horikita was already entangled in the web of the spider, but then again I was on the same boat.

"Ryuuen-kun . . .would you let me talk to Horikita-san for a little while. I will try to clear the situation-" Kushida interfered again.

"Have you lost your senses, Kushida-san?" I interrupted Kushida.

"Huh?"

"Being the traitor, you must be really confident in Ryuuen to play out this act alongside him."

At this point shifting the conversation from Horikita would be the best. I don't understand their situation thoroughly enough to try arguing for it.

"What. . Ichinose-san I don't want to blame you as the traitor, but to think you would say I am the traitor."

"Yes, I have been observing you closely. You said you won't harm Class D if I don't leak your secret then why are you doing this?"

I didn't plan to hide Kushida's secret after this, I didn't have anything left to lose. My classmates have already branded me as a traitor.
"Huh, secret?" Horikita sounded a little perplexed. Kushida's smile slowly faded away from her face.

"Why would you do it Kushida-san, I didn't tell a soul about your true-"
"That's enough!" Kushida's mask slipped. Chabashira sensei narrowed her eyes on Kushida.

"You're the traitor of Class D, do you understand? I am the perfect girl who's friends with everyone." She said with a smirk on her face.

Ryuuen watched the events unfold silently. Generally he won't let me intervene like this, but it seems like he was interested in our discussion as well.

"Play your role like a good girl and get crushed."

"I. . Just how did you get your hands on the participation table?"

"What are you talking about? I told you, you are the one who leaked the table, why are you still bothering me?" It didn't seem like I was going to get any answers from her.

We didn't share the participation table to anyone as a whole, only the four of us had seen it in the end.

After that I submitted the table to Chabashira sensei a week prior to the sports festival.

No matter how many times I repeat it in my head, the plan was foolproof. There is no way Kushida could've seen the participation table before our submission.

"Hey, are you even listening?" The voice of my thoughts had drowned Kushida's voice to an extent.

So if she didn't see the table before the submission then when did she see it?

". . . . ." If not before submission then when?

"Heh, are you that afraid to speak now?" I turned my head away from Kushida.

"Sensei. . if one of our classmates requested to see the participation table after it was submitted by me, would you humor that request?" I asked her, with anticipation in my voice.

Kushida grew silent.

"Yes. I would've shown them the participation table." On hearing sensei's word Horikita's eyes widened as realization dawned upon her.

Up till now, I had been frantically searching for the answer before the time of submission. But from the beginning the answer never lied in that box, Kushida had seen the table after it was submitted.

"Sensei, then can you name the person who saw the participation table after I submitted it to you."

For the first time in the day, her lips curled into a smile and she said.

"Kushida Kikyou."

At last, I have found the solid evidence I needed against Kushida. Without wasting a moment I turned back at her, she stood there flabbergasted by the sudden revelation.

"Kushida-san, this will be enough to prove that you are a traitor."

Ryuuen was observing all our reactions closely but he didn't say a word in support or against Kushida.

If he had supported her about me being a traitor, it wouldn't make sense for him to attack his ally and support a Class D student.

But if he had sided with me to attack Kushida then within a few moments I would prove Kushida was the true traitor.

"L-Lies, I wasn't the last person to view the table. You changed the table slightly after I saw it on the last day."

What?! She didn't change the table?

For a moment I could feel my expression turn into a confused one. If she didn't change it then who did it?

The face of the only person who could do it flashed before my eyes. Did he leave behind a hint for me? I shook my head and regained my composure.

"What are you talking about Kushida-san? Changing the table?"

"Y-Yes, you changed the table after I saw it."

"I don't see any changes in the table. It is the same as I have submitted."

The changes in the table were minute, no one could actually notice them unless they had seen the whole table itself. There was no one in Class D, except the four of us who saw it.

Thus, even if change took place there was no way to prove it. Now that Horikita has witnessed all this, I am sure that the two of us can convince Hirata to our side by using the fact that Kushida had viewed the table after submission.

Once the last of the witnesses are erased, there would be nothing that could save Kushida from being exposed.

"You bitch! Stop lying!" Kushida's last attempt to turn the tables had backfired.

The fact that the table wasn't revealed publicly was used against me, if I hesitate from using the same fact against her then I will be demolished here.

"Sensei, who was the last person to view the table of Class D?" For the first time Ryuuen spoke, but in the face of his question Chabashira sensei stayed silent.

"Tch. Not going to answer me, huh? Oi, Kikyou, ask her who saw the participation table last time."
"What are you saying now, didn't you see Ichinose just asked her that?!" Kushida was distressed, Ryuuen's actions were confusing her further.

"Deaf bitch. She asked who saw it after she submitted it to the teacher. You ask her who was the last person to view it."

It took the three of us a moment to understand what Ryuuen was getting on. But naturally, the last person to view the participation table would be the one who changed it as well or else they would've gained the knowledge of the true table.

"Sensei! Who was the one who viewed the participation table last time?" Kushida asked with desperation, bloodthirsty to know the name of her true enemy.

There was nothing I could do now, if 'he' is the one who changed the table now his name was bound to get exposed. Ryuuen smiled, ready to taste victory. On the contrary both me and Horikita felt defeated.

"Kushida Kikyou."

"Huh?"

His smile disappeared for a moment but then returned.

"Kukuku, to think he even has teachers on his side. Indeed, there is nothing that cannot be bought by points in this school. Even the secrecy of a teacher, huh?"

Ryuuen smiled in elation, his eyes were filled with fascination. He covered his eye with his and peeked through his fingers like a beast glaring from inside his cage. 'He' was already a step ahead of Ryuuen.

"You f*cker, now what do I do?!" Kushida intervened.

"I don't know, ask her," He pointed at me.

"Now you are at her mercy."

Chapter- 17 Shifting gears 4. The twin sisters

Chapter- 17 Shifting gears 4. The twin sisters

"What the hell?!"

"Yes, your fate is in her hands now." The bitch smiled at me.

"This is all messed up! You said you will make Ichinose into a traitor!"

"I did, but it seems like someone saved her ass."

"Don't give me excuses!"

"Calm down, bitch. I never took guarantee of your safety, you are the one who has been attacking them like crazy."

"Damn it. Damn it." I ran out of the room and Ichinose followed me. The path leading to the nurse's office was mostly deserted.

Soon I exhausted myself, and stopped. We were in a secluded area, not many students seemed to be around.

"Hahh, Hahh. Kushida-san, wait let's talk this out."

"Go ahead, report me. What are you trying to do now?" I said in a defeated voice. I laid down on the grass.

I faced the sky once more, the problems of my life seem trivial when I look at it.

Now there was no choice, I will have to go on an all out war against a class once again. I didn't feel particular hatred towards Ichinose who was standing beside me, they are all going down now.

"Kushida-san let's talk, I don't plan on exposing you."

[A/n: Yeah kill me later but this is Ichinose Honami, I can change her character a little but not make it go a 180]

"Huh? What?" Is this bitch taking pity on me?

"Yes, I might be under heavy scrutiny myself. But I don't plan on getting out of it by stepping on you."
I could feel my blood boiling, even when the only way to get out of her situation is to sacrifice me . .she isn't doing it.

"You know Ichinose. . I passionately hate you and your kindness. You can take it and go to hell!" I lost my newfound patience.

"Kushida-san, you have already made my life one." She sat down on the grass.

"Then why not just get rid of me?"
"Let's make a deal Kushida-san, our class needs you. I don't think you will lose your influence over class even if I expose you, such are your powers." She said as if acknowledging them.

It is true everyone won't believe Ichinose; the assumed traitor if she suddenly passed the blame onto me. Even when Chabashira sensei would give out the evidence, there will still be fools who won't believe her.

However, the slightly smart one's like Hirata would instantly mark me as their enemy. This would eventually lead to the all out war that I have within me.

"You are a smart one." I will give her that much, but no matter how cunning this bitch is I will get rid of her sooner or later.

"Now then, Kushida-san. I want to know, why are you doing this? Who is your real enemy?"

I take it back this one isn't smart. Even in a time like this she is trying to understand me first rather than get herself in a safe position.

"Do you think I will just tell you?"

"... You are right.. .leave that, would you mind completing a story with me?"

"Huh? Complete a story? What do you mean?"
"Oh, so you are new to this. I will tell you a story and give you a few options, you pick the options and form a story."
"Uh, have you played too much galge?"

"Um, nope what's that?"

"Nevermind, get done with it fast."

"Okay, so this is the story of two little girls who obtain some poison."

Hmm.

"Now, who did they get the poison from? Maybe they made it themselves? Or a nasty wizard gave it to them? Possibly they stole it from their parents?"
She was actually narrating a story. . .I propped myself up on the grass and looked at her. I didn't mind playing along with her if she is feeling broken or something but. .

Was she serious?

The look in her eyes was that of care, and helplessness, a rather unusual combination. It was the first time I have seen this expression, she isn't distressed or sad it is something else. In any case she wasn't joking around.

I put myself in the place of the sisters and started thinking.

"Hmmm, a nasty wizard gave it to them."

"I see. Why do you think they wanted the poison? Did they need it because they're planning a murder? Perhaps it was a product of curiosity? Or they never wanted it in the first place, they just ended up with it?"

"Uh, they didn't want it." Why did this story suddenly turn dark?

"Now then, what do you think the relationship between them is like? Are they partners in crime? They might be too identical to get along or maybe they get along with each other well?"
This question didn't solve itself like the rest of them. I tried acting like the protagonist but it involved both of them, so I tried acting like both.

One of them would be good natured and the other would be . . . .. .

"You bitch! What are you trying to get out of me?" The realization dawned upon me that the twins were my projection in the story.

"Nothing, you said you would answer right? So please continue."

Ugh.

"They won't get along. .at all." I answered honestly.

I have this feeling that if I lied here then her warm attitude might suddenly vaporize and I would be the victim of her wrath.

"Now the last question.. . How will it end? Will they be punished for it? Or will one sister die due to poison? Maybe to escape the punishment they will poison their parents?"

The prospect of punishment doesn't sound good.

"They will escape the punishment."
"How?"

"What do you mean, how? They will poison their parents."

". . ."
"Kushida-san. . be it murder or be it suicide. . the only way to escape the punishment is for one of the twin to die."

[A/n: These images and the story belongs to a mobile game named alter ego, I don't own em so yea]

With those words Ichinose got up and instinctively I got up as well.

"I will convince Horikita-san to keep your identity secret, for now you use your powers to suppress the rumours of me being the traitor."

"What? The whole class is already convinced you are the traitor."
"If you aren't able to convince them otherwise, then I might have to do it myself."
"Okay okay I understand!"

This bitch, she will be the primary target once all this is over!

We parted our ways and I was back on the path leading to the nurse's office. In the lonely path I wondered where I was heading to?

I recalled the story Ichinose asked me about. Assuming the twins as my own identity, the poison of my life would be the desire to be the most popular girl, to never be doubted by my friend. . .

To rule on everyone with their secrets. A voice in my head echoed, but I ignored it.

It was the poison which invited chaos to my peaceful life, but I could never blame myself for that. It was others that expected me to be at top; they were the ones that gave me the poison.

How can I expect myself to take the punishment for their mistake? After changing myself so much for society, if anyone plans on punishing me, then they must be the one to die. Because, after all, I was always an innocent child who they split into two.

The only way to escape is for one twin to die. Ichinose's words flashed back in my head.

No way I am going to get rid of any of my identities, both of them will exist even if I need to eliminate other's to do so.

The tranquil path had ended, I took a turn and walked towards my classmates. It was already time for the recommended event, the team for the first event; Chase tag had taken their position.

I went through the crowd and looked at the big board that displayed the names of competitors.

"Huh?"

Third person POV:

The young man ran his fingers through his golden hairs.

Standing fearlessly in the arena decorated to look akin to an iron jungle. His opponent glared at him with eyes like those of a serpent.

"Be my guest, Dragon boy."

The first round began.

Chapter- 18 Shifting gears 5 Missing piece

Chapter- 18 Shifting gears 5 Missing piece

Koenji's POV (like it or hate it) (but third person narration)

[A/n: This guy doesn't have a soliloquy either.. . .so third person narration]

With the strawberry girl out of the way Koenji focused himself on the only existence that mattered in this world.

But it didn't seem like his peace was long lived, when he heard another pair of footsteps approaching his royal cottage.

SIGH

"Having a bad day huh?" It was Miyabi Nagumo. Koenji had heard his name a lot from the second year.

"As you can see, that is the case." Koenji didn't face him, he just glanced over Nagumo in the mirror.

"You aren't fooling anyone, I assume you know that much. You know there are girls from all the years waiting for you outside to show your performance, but you decide to hide here?" Nagumo knew about Koenji already, and as he expected, making him budge wasn't an easy task.

"Their expectations don't concern me, suit yourself."

"I have heard rumours about you." Nagumo dropped the act of flattery and decided to threaten Koenji.

"I have heard rumours about me as well."

"You can play the fool, but this school system isn't lenient for students with an attitude resembling yours's."

"Oh, my. How ironic I find this place extremely comfortable."

"I don't have time to waste on you, so I will get straight to the point. I know how you are planning to collect 20 million points in order to reach Class A."

Koenji wasn't expecting these words from the student named Miyabi Nagumo. He kept down his mirror and turned to Nagumo.

"Go ahead."
"After graduation, the school system encashment reduces the value of the private points. However, you have successfully convinced your seniors to sell you those points for double the price."
"Keep going."
"This isn't an illegal method to collect points, but you do understand that once the Student council president gets a whiff of this he will instantly cut off your supply?"

"Are you here just to tell me that?"

"No, I am not against students exploring their abilities and using them to their fullest. So if you plan to cooperate with me for one event I would make sure that Horikita Manabu doesn't catch your tail."

The offer made by Nagumo sounded decent, all Koenji had to do was participate in one event and it would fortify his method further in future.

On top of that, having the cooperation of Miyabi Nagumo would also help him establish connections with the second years willing to strike the same deal with him.

"I have to participate in one event right?"
"Actively participate to be precise."
"I am sorry but I must decline the offer." One hearing Koenji's words, Nagumo felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

The deal did sound decent on surface, but in actuality Nagumo keeping his word wasn't a likely prospect. In order to make sure that Nagumo kept his word, they must have a memorandum.

But would Nagumo sign a memorandum which highlights that in future he will hide information from the student council president?

Would he sign something that was against the morale of the school?

Of course not, this deal was never going to be carried out by Nagumo in the first place and Koenji had seen through his lies.

Nagumo realized that despite his appearances Koenji wasn't a fool, he doubted if any first year would face him with such resistance in the first place.

"It is hard to judge from your appearance that you have logical thinking abilities."
"Fufufu, you are referring to the striking beauty of my existence are you not?" That was the time Nagumo understood he was going to have a perpetual confusion regarding this man.

"Perhaps you understand your own language." It was his last resort and Nagumo didn't want to use it, but there wasn't any loss in it anyways.

He took out his phone from his pocket and switched on its screen.

"The school doesn't allow phones or papers during this festival. But I have both of them."

"Hmm."

"Whichever year it may be, you won't find anyone with points even near me." Nagumo said, turning his screen towards Koenji.

"Very amusing." Koenji said, looking at the screen.

"None of the second years know the true number of points I have, but the proposal I have will benefit you far more than this mundane knowledge."

"Continue."
"On the last day before my graduation, I will transfer all my private points to you, in exchange for double its worth money. As a symbol of our trust I expect you to cooperate with me in this next event actively." Nagumo said.

"Only one event right?"

"Yes."
The amount of points Nagumo held was an extravagant feast, with that deal set on stone it would be the path of least effort to Class A.

However, what if Nagumo transferred all these private points to his classmates and such on the last day?

Money was the only friend he was going to have once he graduated. Koenji had a hold of Nagumo's moral fiber, there was no doubt that he would choose money over his comrades. Even if not operating at any extreme Nagumo can save up an ample amount for both the cases.

Unless you are a lost cause your private points get stacked over the years, given the amount of points Nagumo had already, it was a worthy investment to make considering the future aspects.

After all, all he had to do was to participate in one event.

As for Nagumo this deal was nothing to lose, if the deal works out then he would've gotten the best possible graduation from ANHS history.

However, even in the off chance Koenji is expelled or if Koenji plans to use this information against Nagumo, he would never be able to profit as much as he could if he just sticks to the deal since the information wasn't that sensitive in the first place.

After a few moments of silence Koenji spoke up.

"Time is money, let's sign the deal. The next event starts in a few minutes."

After a few moments they were done. Koenji walked out of the cottage and Nagumo followed him out, as the two unusual duo approached Class D students gave them bewildered looks.

"Hirata boy, sign me up for the Chase tag event. I shall give you a taste of my physical excellence."

"Huh?" It was a pleasant surprise for Hirata but he wasn't ready to accept it yet.

"Make the replacements quickly, Hirata," Nagumo spoke from behind Koenji.

"Senpai-"

"Ichinose Honami has convinced him to participate actively for this one event, if you delay and time slot closes her efforts will be wasted." Nagumo added.

Hirata didn't question it any further and moved towards Chabashira Sensei.

Will Koenji actually help us, or will he just withdraw again?

How did Ichinose even convince him to join?

A current of relief ran through him when the thought of Ichinose not being the traitor crossed his mind.

Once the preparations were done Koenji took his position in the arena representing the first player (evader) of Class D.

His opponent (chaser) from Class C was none other than their leader Ryuuen Kakeru.

Koenji recalled his face to be part of the dragon group.

"Be my guest, Dragon boy." He said, spreading his arms.

Chapter- 19 (Chase tag)

Chapter- 19 (Chase tag)

Ayanokouji's POV

The four participants from our class were, Koenji Rokusuke, Akito Miyake, Hirata Yousuke and myself. A solid line up or so to say, but the fact is that if Koenji takes it seriously then the rest of us won't need to move at all.

"Gentlemen, rejoice for you to have the chance to witness my physical prowess." Koenji left us and climbed into the arena.

His opponent was Ryuuen, at this point Ryuuen was confused. Out of nowhere Koenji had introduced a new variable in his equations.

Bang

The signal went off and both of them started moving, Ryuuen was the chaser and Koenji was the evader. At first Koenji didn't bother increasing the distance between them, evading Ryuuen in close distance.

However, even though Ryuuen's speed and strength might not be phenomenal, he showed splendid agility when in close distance. A product of experience.

Koenji, understanding the situation, distanced himself from Ryuuen and started running all around the arena. Naturally Ryuuen wasn't able to keep up with his pace and after nearly ten seconds he stopped.

A round lasts for 20 seconds, if the evader evades till the end then he remains while another person is eliminated, if the evader is caught then the chaser who caught him becomes the next evader and his opponent for the present round gets eliminated.

There were still ten seconds left but Ryuuen started walking slowly.

"Your class is in dust, what do you prove by showing yourself up now?" Ryuuen tried to probe Koenji for a reaction. Apparently he is ready to hunt the mastermind of Class D.

"..." Koenji slowly walked along with Ryuuen's pace, but he didn't mind answering him.

He just swiped his hair occasionally and waved towards the crowd.

Ding

The round ended on that note. Ryuuen turned around and started leaving.

"That was a very poor attempt, Dragon boy." On listening to Koenji Ryuuen stopped in his tracks and looked back from the corner of his eyes.

Ryuuen would've chased Koenji down like a mad dog if it wasn't the turn for the next competitor.

The next opponent was a basketball player from Class C, he was one of the students who fought against Sudou.

The round began and both of the individuals ran a full 20 seconds, the chaser seemed to be disturbed by the fact that Ryuuen had just been defeated by Koenji. The signal went off and Koenji emerged victorious again.

Koenji was putting up a good show, the spectators from the other classes had started getting excited now. This wasn't a Red team versus White team, naturally people went on with the winning team.

The last opponent that Class C offered was none other than Mio Ibuki.

Unlike the time she was racing against Horikita, now she seemed to be intimidated by the existence of Koenji who eliminated the rest of her team alone.

"You monkey stay in your place." The round began and Ibuki closed her distance. Even though intimidated, her eyes were full of bloodlust.

Koenji didn't bother moving and let her come close. Once she was close enough she launched a kick from the get go, but Koenji dodged it at the very last moment.

"Woah!"
"Hey! Is that allowed?"

The crowd was taken aback from the unsportsmanlike move by Ibuki. True, if the chaser hits the evader instead of tagging them then it will be the chaser that will be disqualified.

However, none of the blows fell on Koenji and the school didn't intervene in the attempts to strike either. Ibuki kept striking but Koenji escaped them all, making Ibuki look even more pathetic.

After 10 seconds of firing kicks like a machine gun she went still and caught her breath. Koenji just smiled back at her with his hands in his pockets.

Unlike in real fights this was a situation where she can attack as much as she wants and the only option left for Koenji was to dodge or else he would lose. However, she didn't understand Koenji could just escape from her if he needed to. He was playing around with her.

"Go Koenjiii!"

"Dude, just a few more seconds!"

Class D who had never liked Koenji to this point, were cheering for him.

"He looks so cool!"

"Damn, he is fast!"

"He looks so gucci with his hairs swaying."
I heard girls cheering for him, they were mostly seniors or the girls that didn't know Koenji in person. By now the match had caught the attention of the whole student body.

Ibuki's performance deteriorated as she realized everyone was looking at her. She became hyper aware of her surroundings.

"Guess we won't have a chance to play. Not that I am complaining or anything."Akito, who was silent up until now, spoke.

"Seems so." Since the island exam, this was the first time I talked to Akito.
"It is better if we conserve the stamina for our relay race." Hirata added.

The last round ended, Class D emerged victorious, now it was time for Class A and Class B to compete. The victor of that match will be the one we will have our next match against.

We returned to our tents and Koenji walked back to his cottage.

"YES!" A loud sound came from our tents.

Ichinose Honami stood between a large crowd, they all seemed fired up. The momentum Koenji had gifted us in the beginning of the Recommended event was uplifting their morals.

"So let's look for them and bring them back." Ichinose declared and everyone around her dispersed.

From the look of it Ichinose Honami had redeemed herself. I looked at Karuizawa who was standing a little far from all this, when she caught me staring at her I moved out of the tent and she followed me.

"..."

"You asked me to follow the tide and decide her fate, she made a comeback by convincing Koenji to play and Kushida also supported her for not being a traitor. I followed them and apologized to her for doubting her."

What? She was the one to convince Koenji?

On top of that Kushida was now supporting her, had she domesticated her already?

Anyways, it seems like Ichinose made a miraculous comeback out of her grave.

"Very well." I left Karuizawa, not to attract attention to us.

Koenji had confused Ryuuen for now, so I can go easy on the relay race. However, it would be better to highlight myself in this opportunity to confuse him further.

As I entered the tent I saw Chabashira-sensei standing in a corner.

Then again, it is better to keep my partnership with her in an active state. I won't win the relay but as long as I run she will be convinced I am contributing to the class.

Horikita and Sudou were still nowhere in sight, if Horikita fails to bring back our ace then it will be a checkmate.

Ding

The match between Class A and Class B had ended, Class A had emerged victorious. In the final round we will be going up against Kanzaki's class.

On hearing the conclusion, Koenji walked out of his cottage ready to compete once again.

Both the players took their positions. Koenji was playing the role of the chaser and the opposite team had sent Kanzaki as the evader.

It took Koenji five seconds to reach Kanzaki who tried his best to keep his distance, once Koenji zeroed upon him Kanzaki tried a fake but Koenji caught him in the first part.

Once again the crowd cheered for Koenji's victory. Although not many Class D students were around.

The next two competitors met the same fate as Class C. They tried their best to catch Koenji but failed miserably. Class D was ruling the first recommended event, as Koenji pulled the whole class alone.

Last person from Class A entered the arena. It was Shibata Sou. The signal went off and Shibata bolted towards Koenji at a controlled speed, as he closed the gap he grew faster.

Koenji slithered through the obstacle while Shibata struggled a little, not able to keep up with Koenji's parkour.

It was in the last 7 seconds when things started turning around. Koenji was heading straight towards a corner, it wouldn't be an easy task to evade Shibata in a place like that.

For the first time in this round Shibata felt a chance to grab victory. There were still three seconds left and Koenji was almost at the corner.

But, Koenji jumped high onto a table and threw himself backwards in the air. Shibata looked above him as Koenji did a book form backflip, landing on another bar near the opposite corner.

Shibata turned around, naturally he faced upwards to look at Koenji. He stood there for the last few seconds and the crowd erupted.

The match was over, Class D had grabbed first place and earned 50 points. Kanzaki approached us with the rest of his teammates.

"That was a splendid performance by your class."

"Our class didn't do anything, it was him alone." Hirata replied looking at Koenji who peacefully retreated back to the cottage.

"I thought he wasn't going to participate in the event," Kanzaki added.

"I thought so as well. But it seems like Ichinose has convinced him to participate somehow."

"Interesting."
"Man, this guy is in a different league. Bring him to the practise sometime Hirata."

Shibata had recovered from his crushing defeat instantly, it didn't seem to bother him in the least. Rather he wanted to acquaint himself with him further. A true sign of healthy competition.

"I wish I could do that. .. . Kanzaki, I have something to discuss regarding the Tug of war event." Hirata said.

"Sure let's talk in the tent."

Chapter- 20 Redemption

Chapter- 20 Redemption

Ichinose's POV:

After leaving Kushida it took me a while to get myself together. I ran back to the nurse's office. I had left Horikita alone with Ryuuen. From my experience back on the cruise ship, it is nightmarish to handle him alone.

By the time I reached, she was exiting the office.

"What happened? Are you okay?"

"For now, yes. How did things go on your end?" She inquired.

"I have asked Kushida-san to cooperate with me for now, she will do her best to eliminate the notion of me being a traitor."
"So you will not expose her?"
"No, I don't plan to do that." Horikita stayed silent for a few moments then spoke again.

"She is a valuable asset to the class, I agree with your approach." Shock must be apparent on my face, for Horikita to acknowledge the abilities of others in a direct manner.

"Did Ryuuen do something to you?" To my question she smiled slightly and said.

"No, it's time for me to grow up and understand others." Ryuuen definitely did something to her .. . .

No, she has actually changed, I can feel it.

"That. . .that's a pleasant surprise."
"What are you going to do now?"
"I am going back to the class, with Kushida-san's help I can convince them that I am not the traitor." On hearing my words she nodded slightly in approval.

"What will you do?" I asked her.

"I am going to get Sudou back." She said without a hint of hesitation. Respecting her decision I nodded back.

"Be fast, or I will have to come searching for you guys." On that note the discussion ended and we parted ways.

This festival has taught us a lot.

--

I returned to the tent, ready to face my classmates and end their confusion.

On returning I saw the next recommended event of Chase tag had begun. Spectators were excited, apparently the match was intense.

I kept my distance and waited for the event to end. Somewhere in the middle I heard my classmates cheer for Koenji.

Koenji? Is he participating?

The crowd applauded, it seems like the match has ended.

"Ichinose-san?" Shinohara was the first one to notice me. Everyone stopped celebrating when they saw me, Mii chan made her way through the crowd and approached me.

"Honami-chan! We are winning! How did you make Koenji play for us?!" Mii chan looked confused but happy.

I made him play? I tilted my head trying to understand the situation.

"Hirata-kun told us that you were the one who convinced Koenji." Shinohara added.

A few of my friends clustered around me but the rest of them kept their distance and gave me a skeptical look.

"Everyone. .." Kushida broke the silence.

"I think we have been caught up in a big misunderstanding," She took another pause and continued.

"I don't think Ichinose-san is a traitor, till now she has been working hard for the class since the beginning of the year. Now she even persuaded Koenji for the class.. . .I think all of us were confused and we put the blame on Ichinose." Kushida said, there wasn't any hesitation in her voice since she was speaking the truth.

"Yes, Honami-chan would never do it."

"Yeah, she ain't the type who rolls like that,"

"But, Kushida-san, the question is, if she is not the traitor who is?" Matsushita-san was the one to ask for it.

"That. . ." Kushida was caught off guard, it seems she didn't prepare for this question.

"Matsushita-san," I took the reins of the conversation.

"Right now catching the traitor won't solve anything,"
"Then what should we do?"

"Ichinose-san," Karuizawa interrupted me. I turned to her.

"I am sorry I doubted you back then, I don't know what the hell I was thinking." A few girls eyed her.

"I can understand you feeling disoriented Karuizawa-san, I know you aren't a bad person. You have also suffered for the class a lot," For a moment Karuizawa looked surprised, she didn't know I had witnessed her on the cruise ship.

"Let's fix what we have messed up." I added.

"Right now, our main priority is to get Sudou-kun and Horikita-san back to the festival. Both of them are the top players of our class, we can't let any more events go without them."
"But, Ichinose-san, who is going to approach them? They will bite back if someone does it." Satou sounded scared.

"More than any of us, it is those two who are frightened right now. Just remember how Ryuuen had targeted them in particular since the festival began. At a time like this we are the only ones who can help them. If we step back when we are supposed to rescue our classmates then in future our class will be eliminated one by one."

I took a brief pause to catch my breath, everyone was listening to me carefully. The prospect of seeing themselves in the position of Horikita and Sudou had gained their attention.

"It is not about saving the MVPs of our class, it is about saving the classmates who are in danger. If we have each other's back then we can get through situations like these. Let's get back Sudou-kun and Horikita san."

For a moment they stayed silent.

"Yes! We gotta save our bro Yamauchi!" Ike had seen Sudou's wrath and Sudou's demise closely, out of all people he was the first one to stand up for Sudou.

[A/n: Character development I hope you don't mind.]

"Y-Yeah, let's go."

Looking at them the rest of the people's doubts seemed to be fading away, they gave them the little push everyone needed.

"I think we should also go and look for Horikita-san." Kushida stepped up. And girls assemble in droves supporting her. She glanced at me and I nodded slightly.

"Okay then those who are in the recommended event stay here, everyone else; Let's bring them back!"

"YES!"

With that everyone dispersed. There was still one round left for Chase tag to end, so there was time until the mixed gender three legged race began.

Now that I am alone again, I wonder why Koenji suddenly cooperated for the class? I can say for sure it couldn't be because I begged him for it.

I walked out of the tent as well, in the corner I saw Nagumo senpai standing. Looks like he was waiting for someone.

"Is everything alright now?"
"Yes, senpai. Right now, I don't understand how, but Koenji is suddenly working for the class and everyone thinks I did it."

"I told you didn't I, 'you have my support, everything will be alright.'" I recalled his words and it slowly dawned upon me.

Did he .. . .?

"How did you-" Before I could complete my sentence he put his index finger on my lip.

"Take care of your class now, we can discuss this little secret of ours later." He said and took a step back.

"I am really thankful for your help, Senpai." I bowed down in gratitude.

Why is Nagumo Senpai helping me?

The question bugged me now.

Kushida's POV:

With the girls of my class I embarked to find Horikita. I wanted to know how she would react when facing me in front of the whole class.

If she accuses me of being a traitor, then it will take time for her to get Chabashira-sensei in front of the class and provide the evidence. Before that happens I will take the time to play my part as well.

However, she knows me well not to try that. But being safe never hurts.

Since we didn't have phones it was going to be hard to find Horikita in the big campus.. . . that is what I thought.

But we found her standing in the lobby even before any of us split into groups.

"Kushida-san there she is."Horikita stood alone in the lobby staring at the elevator door. Has she lost it now?

She noticed me coming her way and narrowed her eyes once. She doesn't seem to be distressed from any angle.

"Horikita-san, let's go back. Mixed gender three legged race is going to start soon."
"That will be of no use if Sudou doesn't return, he is the only one who can keep up with my speed."

Ugh, don't tell me she is dead set on bringing him back as well.

"Oh. . but we can go and get him. Till then you can run with Hirata." I suggested. The rest of the girls stood quietly behind me.

"That isn't the point Kushida-san, bringing back Sudou is the task of priority here not winning the festival. His cooperation in future has more value than the points in this festival .. . and after all I can't run with this injury." She admitted her weakness and importance of Sudou, I can positively say that I wasn't the only one losing it today.

"Horikita-san!" Ichinose joined us.

"Where is Sudou?" She asked.

"Apparently in his room."
"Then we should go there,"

"That won't help, I know how he feels. He needs to have some time alone, it will only work when he returns to this lobby himself."
What?

"Did you talk to him before?" Ichinose asked after a brief pause.

"Yes, that is why I say that."
"I see, I believe in you Horikita-san and so does everyone else."

Count me out

Ichinose suddenly looked at me.

"Yes, Horikita-san, we will wait with you here until he returns." Forced to comply I played along. Horikita didn't look like she was going to expose me after all.

I looked back at the girls standing behind me.

"If anyone feels uncomfortable then they can leave," I said smiling, but none of them moved.

"Ichinose-san, if you don't mind, would you participate in the mixed gender race? I can't run with this injury." Horikita asked.

"Sure thing! I will leave then, there isn't much time left to change the names."

All the girls except Ichinose stayed, not one guy was here. Where were they looking for Sudou?

Around half an hour passed and all of us stayed in the lobby patiently, other girls started chit chatting a little among themselves. Occasionally one of them would leave but then join after a few minutes, apparently they went to use the restroom.

"The mixed gender race would've ended by now, the four way tug of war will start soon." I said to Horikita who stood beside me silently.

Without Sudou Class D would naturally lose the event, since in recommended participants each class put their best players out.

"Seems so."

"Do we really need to do this?" I whispered quietly so that no one else would hear it.

"It is your choice, but the existence of his classmates waiting for him to return would boost his morale for sure." Horikita replied.

"Horikita-san you have changed . .. and I don't like it."

"..."

At last after ten or fifteen more minutes, the elevator gates chimed and opened. Everyone silently looked at it with anticipation. Yamauchi walked out with a victorious smile.

". . . . .."

From behind him, Ike was pulling Sudou's hand.

"C'mon man, we are nothing without you."

Sudou walked reluctantly with a disinterested expression. But when he saw us his eyes widened and his mouth opened slightly, he was looking at Horikita to be precise.

"Seems like I wasn't the only one who came after you." Horikita broke the silence as all the girls including me stood beside her.

"You guys. .."

[A/n: Sudou . . . they are girls. . ]

Ichinose's POV:

[A/n: Time is back when Chase tag had ended and the second event; mixed gender race was about to start.]

I dashed back to the tents at full speed, only a few individuals stood in there. Koenji was missing again, I assume that was all the help I could expect from him.

I was curious about how Nagumo Senpai made him cooperate, but I felt that this curiosity might take me downhill if I pursue it.

I approached Hirata who was looking at his phone.

"Hirata-kun. . ." He turned his head up and looked at me.

"Horikita-san won't be coming for the mixed gender race, I will participate in her stead." Hirata narrowed his eyes for a moment.

"You aren't a traitor, I am really sorry for my irrational words back then." He apologized quietly, he had lost the charm he used to have. .it seems to be replaced by something else.

"I am glad you understand that, will you run with me in the mixed gender race in place of Sudou?"

We didn't have time to reconcile right now. He glanced at this phone once again.

"Hey, Ichinose. If you don't mind, could I go as Sudou's substitute? I can't guarantee much though." Ayanokouji intervened.

"But it will take a lot of points." Ayanokouji's sudden interest took me by surprise.
"It is okay, I will pay them. I don't feel right making Hirata shoulder all the burden alone." I realized Hirata was the one who paid for the other replacements till now.

"Sure thing, let's do it Ayanokouji-kun." He nodded slightly.

We both ran to Chabashira-sensei without wasting any time.

"So you are Sudou's substitute, Ayanokouji-kun?" Sensei asked him.

"Yes."
"How unusual, I thought you preferred to watch from the sidelines."

"..."

We took our position in the fourth lane, I crouched down and tied the cord.

"Ayanokouji-kun," I said as I stood up.

"You were the one who changed the participation table right?" I asked him looking into his eyes.

"Yes." The air around us felt heavy.

"If you wanted to . .you could've saved all the trouble for Horikita-san and Sudou-kun. However, you didn't do that."

"..." He remained silent.

"I don't know anymore if you are our ally or not."

I always had irritation regarding his flippant attitude, but that is another thing. Right now he is letting the class fall on purpose.

"..." Still didn't utter a word.

"Say something."
"Something."

"..." We stayed silent for a moment then he spoke.

"How did you get Koenji to participate in the festival?" He asked me.

"I won't tell you. You don't tell me anything." I pouted with lingering frustration.

"Do you think I won't be able to figure it out myself?" He asked in a matter of fact manner.

"Well. . .."

"Out of all the Class D students you are the one that showed a deviation from my prediction. I will give you that much. Did you figure out who the real traitor is?"
"Yes, it is Kushida Kikyou."
"Very well."
"You knew that as well right?" He nodded slightly in agreement.

"In the future there will be an all out war, prepare yourself." I analyzed what he said but we were asked to get ready for the race.

Chapter- 21 Curtain falls; The festival ends.

Chapter- 21

Curtain falls; The festival ends.

Ayanokouji's POV:

Once we were done with the race, Ichinose untied the cord.

"Will Horikita be coming for the relay race?" I asked Ichinose before she could ask me anything.

"I hope so. But I don't think she would compete even if she made it, her injury seems serious."

"Register me for the anchor in the relay race, I will pay you the points later."

"Okay, but. .. nevermind." Without any further discussion we parted ways.

I returned to our tent, but it was mostly empty. Only a few students remained there; the recommended participants to be precise.

"Now only two events left, huh?" Akito said standing beside me.

"Yes, it seems we will have to go for it without Sudou." Akito gave a bitter nod. With nothing better to do I took a seat on the folding chair, from the tent of Class A I saw Hirata walking out.

Once he entered our tent, he approached me and Akito.

"Guys, I have a plan. Hear me out."

--

All four teams assembled on the court, it was my first time playing a four way tug of war. Each team had one rope facing towards them, the ropes were of different colours.

Cones were set on four corners of a square, each team would pull the rope in order to make the center square cross the side of the bigger square they were competing in. Once that area is breached the event will conclude and the winner will be announced.

Measurement will be done in case any team doesn't win in given time limit, or if one wins then for the runner ups the distance will be measured.

[A/n: This is an example of what a winning position looks like. As you can see the team wins when the team crosses it's side of the big square. I will call these sides the boundaries of the team to avoid confusion.]

Unlike the other classes, our class only had three participants for it. Hirata, Akito and myself.

The referee signaled us to get ready and we picked up our rope waiting for the signal to start. Our opponent was Class B, while Class A faced Class C.

I recalled what Hirata said before this started.

"Kinoshita isn't participating in the recommended events due to the injury she suffered during the collision with Horikita. Assuming that is another scheme of Ryuuen we should understand that he is ready to sacrifice his own chances of winning if it means to crush us,"

Hirata took a pause and continued.

"If we want to fight then we will also have to use similar tactics, we must be ready to sacrifice our chances of winning to stop him."

"Sounds good to me." Rather than being concerned about Hirata's change, Akito seemed to be fascinated by it.

Bang

The signal went off and the game began. Class B was overpowering us pretty soon. Naturally the face of the battle changed.

Class A and Class C closed the angle between us to counter Class B. Ryuuen was standing in front for Class C, he was adapting at a good pace.

[A/n: A/B/C/D are name of boundaries, not ropes mind you, the small rope is Class D, one opposite to it is Class B and so on.]

However, Class A and Class D had already planned it out. Once the position was stable, we started closing the angle between Class A and us.

This caused the force against Class B to reduce and they started pulling towards their boundary. But, we were the only class who were applying force directly in a circular motion. Thus, as we closed the angle between Class A and us. As a result, Class B were forced to close the angle between Class C as well, causing Class B to deviate from their boundary.

[A/n: I hope you can tell which class rope is which. In case of any doubts, Class A and C are on the same axis as they were. It is Class D who have forced Class B on the A/C axis]

Since our chances of winning against Class B were nearly zero, the idea here was to sacrifice our non-existent chances and join forces with Class A. Ultimately to ensure that Ryuuen loses, because the class opposite to the winning class will lose automatically in the measurements.

A strategy only a team who had no hopes of winning would apply.

Naturally Class B had taken a huge lead by the time we changed the position. But Kanzaki was told about this development beforehand so he had also taken a small lead.

Taking advantage of the surprise element the A/D coalition approached boundary A. However, this was where the plan would start failing.

The B/C coalition had adapted to the new position and we were still a few steps short of winning. The advantage we had ends here.

We felt immense power surging from the other side of the rope. We had won in a tug of war event but this time Sudou was missing and it was showing visible results.

The force that pulled us was met with the same. I looked at Class A from the corner of my eye, they were gritting their teeth and pulling the rope with all they had.

The risk of this strategy was that if we are overpowered, then Class A will be the one to lose.

"Pull! We can't let their sacrifice go to waste!!"

Shibata, who was straining himself, was short on breath, but he yelled anyway.

Class A weren't only fighting to win for themselves, they had respect for our sacrifice.

Even in the school where you had to step on the other classes to climb, Shibata had a heart for others. A truly superior man.

But, as Shibata yelled his grip loosened a little and we were pulled towards the boundary C a little. He regained his strength fast and again we were at a stalemate just farther from our boundary. The rope was moving towards the B/C coalition but the development was non-existent.

I don't know what kind of expression Hirata wore, but Ryuuen who was standing opposite to him wasn't laughing.

I heard Akito breathing heavily behind me. In order to maintain this equilibrium, Hirata and Akito were the ones who were under most stress.

If they deplete their stamina anymore then it will prove detrimental for the relay race.

I gripped the rope tightly and leaned a little backwards planting my legs firmly in the ground, I pulled with all my strength.

Gradually our coalition crossed the boundary A and victor was decided. Everyone on our side fell down on their knees from exhaustion, I did the same making sure that I didn't stand out.

Ryuuen and his classmates left the court without saying anything. After a long time, a smile met Hirata's face again.

"That was close... hahh. . . I thought we were done for." Shibata said between his breaths.

"Yeah. ..I realized midway that it was a bad idea." Hirata mused.

"C'mon man, we won already. Let's get ready for the final event." Shibata pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Yes, you are right." I observed them silently keeping my distance.

"Damn Ayanokouji, you are one strong one." Akito said.

"Huh?"

"When you leaned back, it was the first time I felt we had a chance of winning."
Akito was behind me during the event, out of all the people he would've noticed the impact.

"I was about to lose my strength, so I gave it my all one last time."

"Nice, I also gave it my all at that moment." Akito replied with an exhausted face.

The three of us returned to our tents to find it was still deserted, only the recommended participant Onodera was there. If Horikita and Sudou don't return then the next event was a lost cause.

"We won't have enough members, where is everyone?" Hirata asked Ichinose.

"They are standing in the lobby waiting for Sudou." She replied.

"But we are short on members,"

"Horikita-san won't be competing, I have registered Ayanokouji as the anchor for now."
"Why? Did her injury get serious?"

For his answer Ichinose nodded slightly. Understanding the fact Hirata felt disheartened.

"We are still short on one member,"

"Let's wait for a few minutes, if they don't return then I will go on looking for them." Ichinose reassured him.

The four way tug of war was going to take place for the rest of the years as well so there was still a little time left.

However, within the next few minutes Horikita returned, leading the whole class back with her. Sudou, who was standing right behind her, stepped ahead.

"Sorry Hirata. . my hand slipped back then."

Horikita gave him a stern look.

"I mean, I am sorry I punched you and ran away . . It is my fault that we are losing this event." We didn't exactly lose the events but Sudou didn't know about it, Class D hadn't died even in his absence thanks to the joint effort of Hirata and Ichinose.

On hearing those words Hirata was stunned for a moment, a smile returned back to his face.

"Get warmed up, we the final event waiting for us,"

Hirata announced, no one in the class seemed to have any objection against Sudou anymore. To think these are the same people who chased him away an hour ago.

Our grand lineup was ready. Sudou, Hirata, Akito, Onodera, Ichinose and myself. Class D was looking strong.

Hirata approached Horikita who didn't give off the same air of hostility she used to. It seems like confronting Sudou had also changed something within her.

The chosen elites assembled on the track, the classes were arranged in a manner that gave first year Class D a little advantage, as they were placed in the innermost lane.

Third year Class A on the other hand were placed in the outermost lane.

Supportive cheers roared from our camp. Regardless of how much they had suffered in the sports festival, they were fired up for this event.

The moment the signal sounded, Sudou shot himself forward. Within two strides or three he was leading the race.

The racers, surprised with his speed, struggled for their position, but no one could even come near our runner. By the time Sudou passed the baton to Hirata we already had a lead of about fifteen meters.

"GO! HIRATA!"

Girls from our class yelled in unison. Class D was brimming with excitement, runners from other years chased Hirata one after another but to no avail. Closing such a significant gap wasn't possible for them right now.

"Akito!" Finishing with his leg of the race Hirata passed the baton to Akito, who bolted down the lane.

"What the hell?!"
"That is first year, that too Class D!"

The seniors who were playing the role of anchor didn't believe what they saw. Class D didn't show any signs of losing the first position.

Unrivaled, Akito passed down the baton to Onodera. That was where we got a little slow. However, our lead didn't vanish suddenly. Towards the end of her part only one third year guy was able to overtake her.

Still, when she passed the baton to Ichinose the lead had decreased significantly, another student from second year Class A overtook her.

The race was full of surprises, the third year guy who had just overtook Ichinose a few moments ago made a mistake while passing the baton to the next runner.

The next runner wasn't able to receive the baton correctly, it slipped out of his hand. He frantically juggled the baton but avoided it from falling down. By this time the second year runner had taken a significant lead, Ichinose was back in second place. But. ..

On the lane beside her, Kanzaki was chasing her down like a mad dog.

"Eeek!" Ichinose shrieked as Kanzaki went past her like a wind.

Only Class A and Class D from the first year were able to keep up with the senior years.

"Looks like I will be the one waiting after all." A second year senior who had blonde hair said to Manabu Horikita. It appears that he is the anchor of second year Class A.

After a moment of silence Manabu replied.

"You should claim victory while you can."

"Heh, that would be boring." The second year replied. His team was leading the race right now, and within few seconds he received the baton.

"Cool, now take a corner." He said to the runner.

"..." And he stayed still. ... ? . showing no signs of running to his win.

"What?!"

"What are you doing Nagumo?"

Other anchors who saw the bizarre situation questioned him, but he didn't show any signs of answering.

"Shibata!" Kanzaki passed the baton to Shibata and he took off looking back twice in confusion.

Ichinose was the slowest runner of our team, so it didn't come to me as a surprise when she was overtaken again by the third year Class A and third year Class B.

The runner who was juggling the baton a few moments ago, swiftly approached Manabu.

Nagumo observed the events unfold closely, he took a stance ready to bolt down once the elder Horikita got his baton.

"You did well, good job." Elder Horikita took the baton and stood still. The runner who had put his all into the sprint left the lane in a mild state of shock.

The whole school was in a state of shock, as the student council president lost the lead his classmates had earned him.

"Hey, hey, hey, that isn't how you roll, Senpai. Don't tell me you are too afraid to run now!" Nagumo sounded irritated and perplexed.

"..." But Horikita kept looking at the other runners.

The third year Class B anchor received his baton and took off.

"Drop the nonsense Nagumo." He said before leaving. The president was doing something similar but he didn't utter a word against him.

"Tch." Nagumo glanced at Shibata and realized if he waited for Horikita any longer he wouldn't be able to get the first place.

Amidst the chaos Nagumo took off and chased Shibata with fire in his eyes.

"Ayanokouji-kun!" At last Ichinose was here with the baton. She would be here any second now.

Horikita took his stance and I did the same. He looked at me one last time before we started.

"Run as fast as you can."

Ichinose passed the baton and I took it without facing her. We both bolted down the lane at full throttle.

"Huh?"

The cold breeze of October pushed us to go even faster, the tail wind supported us.

In the white room, it was always a race against the time. Running against others was a rare occurrence, but what was even rarer was a man who kept up with my pace.

I couldn't help but feel a little excitement in my heart as both of us ran neck to neck.

I lost track of who was ahead me and who was behind me, all that mattered now was to defeat the man running next to me.

He kept up with me beyond the first curve, I kept accelerating but he did the same and we crossed the straight line that followed the first curve.

Alright, I will go even faster.

Cheers sounded like angry bellows, I erased the existence of Horikita Manabu from my mind, the last existence that mattered to me right now. Strategies and resourcefulness were rendered useless.

Sharpening my soul I ran forth with all I had.

Crossing the finish line I slowed down my pace gradually, and eventually stood still. Ignoring the background noise which kept growing I looked at the big digital board that displayed the rankings.

1st - Ayanokouji Kiyotaka (1-D)

2nd - Horikita Manabu (3-A)

3rd - Miyabi Nagumo (2-A)

4th - Shibata Sou (1- A)

5th - _

6th - _

.

.

.

.

Presumably the weakest of all classes had won the battle including all three years.

Manabu approached me walking briskly.

"Well played." He congratulated me for my victory, like a true sportsman and smiled slightly.

"You too, you surpassed my expectations." I admitted truthfully. I have seen him running in the other races, but in none of those did he run as fast as he ran in this one.

With that brief exchange the elder Horikita left, making sure not to draw more attention to me.

"Ayanokouji-kun!!" Ichinose jumped on me. In excitement she wrapped her hands around me and her soft breast pressed against my chest.

Her heart was pounding so hard I could feel it pounding against me, after the sprint I did mine was in the same state. Feeling my heart pulsating against her she left me a little embarrassed.

"I didn't know you ran so fast!"

"I didn't know that either."

"Hey! At least look happy, we have won 150 points!" She exclaimed with joy.

She is right, given the fifty points Koenji had earned and now the 150 points, our total points would have shot up dramatically and our rankings would've improved.

[A/n: My man . . stop analyzing for once and celebrate]

"Well that is true. The president lives up to his reputation."

"Yeah, it was so intense till the last few moments we didn't know if you would make it," Ichinose reported.

"Hm?" I inquired.

"I mean, he was two or three steps behind you at most. You both ran together and overtook everyone!"

What?

Till now I have won most of my races against others with a big margin. Even though the distance Ichinose is talking about is actually significant when it comes to races like these. It was still my first time to win by a lead this small.

I turned back to see the figure of Horikita Manabu retreating slowly, accompanied by the secretary.

"Interesting."

From a distance I heard a crowd approaching me at high speed. It was the students of Class D, exhilarated from the last event they were approaching me ferociously. It almost seemed like they were here to attack me.

"Ayanokouji-kun .. do you know what will happen now?" Ichinose said in a menacing tone.

"What?"
"They will pick you up,"

Wait. . I have seen this happen.

"Then throw you in the air. ." She continued narrating like a detective.

"Again .. and again."
Gulp

I wasn't opposed to that idea, but I can't trust these exhausted students. What if someone got tired around the third or fourth throw then didn't bother catching me?

"Save me." I commanded her.

"Hey, at least make it sound like a request." She pouted. The crowd was almost there.

"Okay. . save me."

"What? That sounded the same."

This . . .

"Okay okay, kneel down acting like your ankle got sprained very hard. I will handle the rest."

"AAAAAAAA!!!!!!" They were only a few seconds away, their roar grew louder. Without giving it a second thought I let my right leg go to sleep and fell down dramatically.

"Ah." I made a convincing sound . .. at least I tried to.

"Ayanokouji-kun!! He is hurt!" Ichinose exclaimed in a worried tone.

The students took a second and stopped.

"Hey hey stop he is hurt."
"Ouch! Don't push me."

Ichinose put my arm around her shoulder and lifted me.

"I will get him to the nurse's office." A little confused, the crowd made way for us.

Horikita who was sitting on a folding chair gave me a slight smile. In just one day I had seen both the Horikita siblings smile a little.

Watching her brother defeated, I can only think what she is going through right now.

Ichinose slowly dragged me out towards the nurse's office. Once we were out of sight from the class I took my burden off Ichinose and switched our positions.

"What?" She looked surprised as I took her hand across my shoulder and supported her.

"I know your left leg is in pain. You shouldn't have pushed yourself in the relay race," I said as I carried her.

"But. .it was our only chance to win.. ."
"You did well." I reassured her, it reminded me of the time I found her on the island.

Pushing her leg like this would've made the condition worse, I should get her to the nurse soon.

"Koenji-kun said the same thing to me."
What?

"He told me that my left leg was hurt and to go see a nurse."

From the way she was walking it wouldn't be a surprise if Koenji noticed it, but since when did he start caring about her?

That reminds me of the question, how did she make Koenji work. Asking her that in this condition won't be good, I will ask her for the report later.

We entered the nurse's office and I seated her on a bed nearby. On noticing the patient the nurse came forward.

"You!" She exclaimed, I turned my head to see her.

It was the same woman from the cruise ship who the mechanic school had carried in case of emergency related to phones.

"Do you know her, Ayanokouji-kun?" Ichinose asked.

"I have never met this woman in-"

"You are that sour liar from the cruise ship!" I felt a little hurt from that remark of hers.

"Ouch."

"I think you should treat her first." I said.

"Oh yeah." She lost interest in me and started treating Ichinose. A few beds away I saw Kinoshita sleeping on a bed, it seems like Ryuuen did carry out his plans to the fullest.

I sat down on the floor beside Ichinose's bed. The nurse applied some ointment and wrapped a bandage around Ichinose's ankle.

"Stay put for today. You will be jumping by tomorrow." Making an odd remark she left the ointment on the table.

So she is a nurse and a technician. .I wonder what else she can do.

I took the bottle from the table and opened the cap.

"What do we have here?" Ryuuen entered the nurse room.

"Ryuuen." Ichinose said.

"Once again you tribe of baboons have grabbed a meaningless victory. You might've won, but at what cost? Suzune will kneel before me, Karuizawa is dead meat next time Manabe meets her, Hirata has lost it. . . and you look at you."

Ryuuen provoked Ichinose repeatedly, but the truth was that he was trying to probe a reaction out of me. If I had been the mastermind I would've been bothered by his remarks at least.

However, I kept my indifferent expression and bowed my head down slightly. Looking defeated like any other student would while I sat on the floor.

"You sound like you are convincing yourself of your victory Ryuuen."

Ichinose ignored all his provocations and returned the favor, last time she did this it was the results of an island exam.

Ryuuen walked to her bed and grabbed her collar.

"Listen here, whoever is the one hiding behind the shadows. Tell him that I will crush all his limbs before I crush him." He said with a feral look in his eyes.

Ichinose couldn't help but feel intimidated when faced with the devil. The sound of footsteps came from the nearby door, the nurse was returning.

He left Ichinose and she sank back on her bed. He glanced at me once more before leaving, then walked out without meeting Kinoshita.

"A war, huh?" Ichinose said, looking at me.

Case study and afterword

First let's hop onto the case study. How did Ayanokouji win the race?

I will take my attempt on clearing your doubts in case you have any.

In real LN the team was Sudou, Hirata, Onodera, Maezono, Kushida and Ayanokouji. But right now it is Sudou, Hirata, Akito (significantly faster than the girl) , Onodera, Ichinose( Faster than Kushida) and Ayanokouji. Ok, now keep that in mind for now and understand that Class D is going to take significantly less time than in real one since 200m were covered by Akito instead of Maezono.

In real LN: Class 3-A girl runner had taken a spill and fell down. But in the fanfic that didn't happen, it was a mistake around 5th runner when the guy mishandled the baton for a few seconds. This event takes lesser time than the girl to fall over and then start running again.

So from the above two points please understand that both 1-D and 3-A were faster than that in real LN.

In real LN the lead Hirata and Sudou gained was gone by the time Onodera passed the baton to Maezono who was the fourth runner. In this case the lead hadn't vanished until the fifth runner who was Ichinose, since Akito was able to keep the lead during his turn unlike Onodera.

As for why Shibata is nerfed so hard?

In real LN: The Class B had already overtaken Class D by the end of fourth runner, as mentioned by Ayanokouji they were only one from first year to compete with seniors. However this time Class D had also tagged along with them, it was during fifth runner Ichinose when Kanzaki overtook her.

In real LN: After Shibata ran off chasing Nagumo, Manabu and Kiyotaka had a long nice chat about Class D and Suzune, then finally when Ayanokouji asks Manabu to race him, he tells him that he will accept his challenge if Manabu gives up on his chances to get the 2nd place. Now . . Nagumo was already gone Shibata was chasing him for a long time, to have a chance at 2nd place meant Manabu would've overtook Shibata. And this Ayanokouji said when Manabu didn't even have the baton. After a few second Manabu takes his baton so it was a considerable time to overtake Shibata.

In the fanfic however, this convo didn't take place after Shibata left, Manabu got his baton soon and Nagumo ran off since according to his calculations any further delay and he won't be able to catch Shibata. Now the long chit chat that went on in LN doesn't happen here, it is only "Run as fast as you can" then race.

Lastly Nagumo has been mentioned to be league above Shibata by Ayanokouji. And Ayanokouji has mentioned that he outmatches Nagumo in athletics. Hope that justifies the win Ayanokouji got, in case more questions pop up feel free to ask I will try to answer them in comment section if this answer isn't satisfactory.

Afterword:
*looks around*
So you read this huh?

Well the next volume the story will start to deviate a little more and more from LN, things will gear up a little soon. However, now that I am done writing sports festival I got a life to return to. I will start updating again once I have next volume planned and go on updating spree lol.
You might consider following me so that you are notified when that happens. Anyways cya around till next time.

Chapter -1 (Zaizen arc begins)

Chapter- 1 (Ayanokouji's POV)

Immediately after the sports festival ended, the elections for student council began. And within a few days results were out. The whole student body had gathered around to witness the handover ceremony.

That is to say, however, none of the first year seemed particularly interested in it. They yawned and stretched occasionally to avoid falling asleep. However, the upper classes avoid such things.

"Now, here are some final remarks from president Horikita of the student council."

Following the moderator's speech, Horikita Manabu slowly approached the microphone on the stage. If it was the Horikita from before, the younger one I mean, just seeing her brother on stage would probably make her cower.

But now, as she watched over her brother's resignation, she was staring at him with a firm look.

"I am proud and grateful to have been able to lead the student council for almost two years. Thank you very much."

After his brief statement, Horikita's brother quietly retreated and returned to his original position. There were no moving words in his speech. It could be said that it was a solemn and dutiful statement.

However, it does not look like the retirement ceremony will end with just this.

The student council officers on the stage with him stood firm, not breaking their solid posture.

"Student president Horikita has worked so hard for you all. Now, please welcome the new student council president, second-year student of Class A, Miyabi Nagumo."

That guy .. . .

Miyabi Nagumo, the new student president, walked forward and stood in front of the microphone.

"I am Miyabi Nagumo of the second year's Class A. President Horikita, I really appreciate your strict and kind guidance so far. I am honored and would like to pay tribute to you. I am thankful for being able to accompany

the legendary president who has played one of the greatest leadership roles in the history of this school."

With that, he bowed deeply in the direction of Horikita's brother, and then re- faced the students. While a few of those words seemed empty, it seems like he meant most of what he said.

"Let me introduce myself again. My name is Miyabi Nagumo. I will be the next student president of Advanced Nurturing High School. Please take care of me."

Once he faced us again, any hint of respect was lost in his voice. It reminded me of his attitude during the sports festival. In his final leg of the relay race he didn't pay much heed, neither to his seniors, nor his classmates.

But I felt that was only the surface.

Nagumo smiled thin and small so as to change the calm atmosphere.

"I'll get straight to the point. First of all, I promise to change the terms and appointment method of the student council as well as the practice of the general election. This will mean changing the date of the general election of

the student council from December to October. This shift will be an attempt to move to a new generation for the student council and I judge that that then will be when the new student council will move towards a new era. I will

change the tenure of the president and officers from terms to indefinite so they can serve until graduation. At the same time, I will abolish the current restrictions on the number of student council officers. In other words, as long

as it is an excellent and necessary person, they can become a member of the student council at any time regardless of the number of slots that are open. In the event that someone is judged unfit for office, I will establish a system of majority vote at the meetings for expelling them from their positions. As a starting point, let me make a declaration to the students, teachers, and leaders

of the former student council who are assembled here. The school system of the future... I will destroy all that has been preserved by the previous student councils for the sake of the appearance of the school."

He spoke the last line so forcefully that it seemed to negate all the merits of the former student president who stood behind him.

"I originally wanted to implement this new system immediately, but unfortunately, I cannot do that. This is because the new student president will be bound by various kinds of constraints upon first taking office," he took a pause and continued.

"However, I will find my ways around it. Every student hearing this should be ready." On hearing that a few teachers threw a glance at him but averted their eyes back.

Nagumo glanced at Horikita, the former student council president, and then turned back to the students.

"I promise that there will be a great revolution in the near future. Students with strength will climb up to the top and those without strength will fall to the bottom. I will turn this school into a real meritocracy, so please show me what you all can do."

The gymnasium was immediately silenced by his declaration, but almost all the sophomores soon started screaming with joy and became rowdy. Maybe there was a battle between the second years and the third years that we didn't know about. It was an event that made me feel that way.

Once the event ended we all dispersed back to our dorms, after all it was saturday. On my way back I went to the convenience store, now that the sports festival is over Ichinose and others don't have any reason to visit me on weekends anymore.

However, I bought a few tea packets just in case they did. As I bought them I spotted Hirata who was shopping alone.

Since the sports festival ended he has been isolated from his classmates, girls would approach him multiple times but he would get them away without conversing much.

Only a few of his friends talked to him from time to time but beside that he seemed to be alone. Naturally his popularity took a dive, people around him did question his attitude relentlessly but never reached a conclusion.

Their trust in him was a little dampened but he still had people approaching him left and right, including Karuizawa. This disturbance was handled mostly by Ichinose Honami who assumed the role of class leader.

Just like Hirata, my image in the class had also grown ambiguous since I won the relay race. Students often gave me puzzled looks, there were a few seniors who tried to make me join different sports clubs. However, I dodged them all somehow. At times myself, other times Ichinose would handle them.

Not sure if to approach Hirata or not, I decided not to do so. Done with billing I exited the store, on the gate I came across two girls who were entering the store. When they spotted me one of them stopped in her tracks.

"Can you go ahead? I got a phone call to attend, I will join you in a few seconds." She said to another girl. Her name was Satou.

"Hein? But your phone didn't ring even once." The other girl resisted.

"Yeah, I just remembered I gotta make a quick call." But Satou pursued further.

"Okay, I will wait."

I started walking away from the scene so as not to witness anything further. But. ..

"Hey, Hey, Ayanokouji-kun." I felt a little nervous when she called me out, but ignoring now would come off rude.

Although she was a classmate, she was one I barely spoke to.

"What's the matter?" I said turning around.

"Yes, well. It's a bit."

She wasn't making herself quite clear. Unfortunately, I couldn't speculate on the content.

I was too lacking in information about the student Satō.

"Well, how can I put it? Can I borrow some time? I have something to say."

This was rather strange. I tightened my guard a little, but I'm not brave enough to refuse an offer. It is easier to gather enough courage to accept than to gather the courage to refuse.

"It's a little inconvenient here, is it alright if we go somewhere else?"

Before I answered, Satō seemed to predict that I would not refuse, and offered to change places. I obeyed her and followed behind her.

We were attracting too much attention here after all.

"I'm going to ask you something a little strange... Ayanokōji-kun, is there someone you're currently dating?"

"Er, what does that mean?"

"Well... literally speaking, it means having a girlfriend... how about that?"

If I had been asked to choose between a "yes" option, and a "no" option, I would not have had the capacity to answer anything other than "no."

Saying that was like stressing how unpopular I was, and although I felt reluctant to do so, there was no use lying, so I answered her honestly.

"No..."

"Hmm, I see… Can I take that as though you're looking for a girlfriend?"

She did not look down on me, nor pity me, but instead showed a happy little smile.

At this point, I began to understand how things were going.

Was this a trap with the goal of framing me? I was on guard, but there were no signs of someone hiding nearby.

So, either Satou herself, or a friend of hers, seems to think that I'm decent boyfriend material. Why all of a sudden at this point in time?

"If you'd like to start with just being friends -- well... would you exchange phone numbers with me?"

It seems that it's not a friend of hers she's asking for, Satō herself seems to be the one that's interested.

It never occurred to me that the day of a girl's request would actually come. This was like the act before the confession.

"Anyway, I get it."

I can't find any reason to refuse her request to exchange our phone numbers.

Getting into a relationship would be a matter of leaps and bounds into the future. As of now, I'm only being asked to exchange phone numbers.

"Well, that's that."

The mobile phone shows the completed contact registration page. To increase my number of girls' contacts is a happy thing.

After this brief interaction with Satou, there was a strange tranquility in the atmosphere.

"I'm asking a question that's a bit awkward. Why are you suddenly asking me for my contact information?"

Satou blushed a little and didn't open her eyes.

"Ask me why... During the relay of the sports festival... Should I say you were very cool? Or should I say you've been so close-by, and I haven't noticed you at all? I had thought the best guy in the class was Hirata-kun, but

he is Karuizawa-san's boyfriend, so he's out of the question."

As she finished saying this, she opened her eyes and looked up at me, and awkwardly adjusted what she had said.

"Ah... should I say that I don't think you are worse than Hirata-kun? To be honest, after I got a closer look, you seem to be more handsome than Hirata- kun. You also look really reliable and gentle... That's all!"

Perhaps the feeling of shame had swelled up in her, as I couldn't hear the last part very well, and Satou inevitably left like the wind. My thoughts couldn't keep up with what had happened with her, so I stood still.

I was in an unexpected situation at an unexpected place with an unexpected person. Although nobody knows what the future holds, no way did I expect this to actually happen. What am I supposed to do about this? I feel neither negative or positive about Satou, only considering her as an ordinary classmate. Does this mean that the right thing to do is to refuse her confession?

No, she didn't say she wanted to be with me or that she liked me. I was just asked about my relationship status and was asked for contact information.

Even if I assume her intentions a bit, I was only asked to become friends with her and to exchange contacts. If I refuse her confession, perhaps she will spit at me, saying I misunderstood something. That would be very embarrassing.

After our brief exchange ended, I walked back to my dormitory. I laid down in my room, with nothing particular to do. I surfed on the internet for a while, after a while I noticed it was already six in the evening.

"It seems like they won't be coming after all-""

Beep

A notification landed on my cell phone, it was Ichinose.

"Heyo, Ayanokouji-kun. We were thinking of meeting at your room again, you cool with it?"

"Any reason for meeting?"

"Yeah, Hirata and Horikita wanted to discuss something."

"Sure."

"Nyahaha, we always bother you so muuch."

"It is okay, at what time will you all come?"

"Around half an hour or so?"

"Sure."

Hirata and Horikita both had changed during the sports festival, as the leaders of the class it is natural they would gather to discuss the future aspects of the class.

As expected the three of them arrived together in half an hour, Ichinose who usually came early was on time. Perhaps because it was a short notice she took her time.

"I will go and make some-"

"It is okay, we won't drink tea today." Ichinose stopped me from approaching the kitchen.

I looked at Horikita and Hirata who gave me a small nod. The four of us got seated, the atmosphere was very different from the rest of the time.

After what happened in the sports festival, Hirata and Ichinose were dividing into two factions soon enough. Hirata wasn't exactly leading them but they sided with him and naturally ignored Ichinose.

"Hirata-kun, since the festival you haven't socialized with your friends at all. Classmates are getting worried about you now." Ichinose said.

"... That can't be helped, after what has happened in the sports festival I don't think I can return back to them."

"I don't think any of your friends reject you for that, we all were confused at that time." Ichinose reassured him.

"It isn't about them accepting me, there is a traitor among them and we still haven't caught the traitor."

"..." Both Ichinose and Horikita looked at each other, both of them had had doubts on Kushida but now it seems they are confirmed.

"That is true, but abandoning them might not be the right choice." Horikita, who had learned this lesson recently, said.

It seems like they don't plan on revealing Kushida to Hirata, after all the way Hirata was hunting for the traitor I can only imagine what he will do when he actually finds them.

"I don't plan on abandoning them."

"What?" Ichinose was perplexed.

"Ichinose, you and I both lack the strictness in our leadership. The fact that there is a lot of leeway for our classmates is what opens the way for traitors to exploit us."

"That. ."

"I realize that ruling with brute force isn't the answer either, but we need someone who can take severe actions when needed."

Ichinose and Horikita looked over at him silently, and what he said wasn't wrong entirely. Class D was in need of someone who can enforce rules better than the existing leaders.

"So you plan to do that yourself?" I asked him.

"Yes."

"But why this sudden change?" Ichinose who was confused at all this asked.

"Ichinose-san, I didn't get the chance to apologize to you correctly. I am sincerely sorry for doubting you like that and even forcing you to confess."

Hirata's tone had respect for Ichinose, this sudden change in his speech proved that even if he does go on using violence he won't do it madly like Sudou.

"That's o-"

"However, in the festival Horikita and Sudou were clearly bullied by Ryuuen," He interrupted before Ichinose could ask any further questions and looked at Horikita.

"Had there not been a traitor, then Karuizawa, Horikita and Sudou, Ryuuen wouldn't be able to target them so accurately."

As Karuizawa informed me, Hirata didn't want his past to repeat itself again at any cost.

Horikita didn't try defending it, she was utterly destroyed by Ryuuen during and she accepted her defeat.

"So… you are going to cooperate with me?" Ichinose asked.

"At times when needed, right now more than focusing on internal conflict I need to fight against Ryuuen."

From what it looks like, Hirata won't be cooperating actively but he won't do anything to hinder class progress either.

"I see. ."

"Is there anyone who supports you in this?" Horikita asked.

"I don't want to involve others in this, however I will need manpower when needed. Akito has agreed to accompany me, he is done with all the nonsense going on."

"That guy? Would he be of any use?" Horikita asked.

"Yes, he is better than most of the weaklings of our class."

"That is only two of you."

"Naturally at times I will need help, would you lend me Sudou at those times?" Hirata asked as if Sudou was a pen.

"You are heading down a dangerous path, how do I know that you won't get expelled in all this?" Horikita had learned from her past experience dealing with Sudou's antiques.

"Whatever happens, I won't let the people around me get expelled. Even if there will be a sacrifice it will be me." Hirata declared, looking straight into her eyes.

Ichinose, who was worried from this development, racked her brain to get them out of this. I noticed since she came she kept looking at her wristwatch occasionally.

"That still doesn't rule out the possibility of getting all of you expelled."

"I am not Sudou, I know when to avoid conflict and I am learning when to embrace it." Hirata said, but I can feel that he is convincing himself of that as well.

Even in the sports festival when Sudou went berserk Hirata didn't make a ruckus out of the situation even though his own blood was boiling, that showcases further he won't lose reasoning midway.

After a moment of silence Horikita replied.

"Very well, but unless in emergency situations I will expect you to explain to me the situation beforehand."

"That's okay with me." Hirata said and it was settled.

"Hirata-kun, why don't you make Ayanokouji-kun join you guys as well?" Ichinose made a rather bizarre proposal.

She must've been troubled considering the dangers that Hirata might get himself into in the future. So she pushed me into it with him to keep an eye on the situation.

"Huh? But does Ayanokouji-kun want to join me?" Hirata adapted to the question and asked me.

"Well, you know he can uh. .tail people. . and uh run fast when needed." Ichinose counted my plus points and was clearly having trouble thinking past two.

Going on in this with Hirata didn't sound all that bad as long as he didn't involve me in scenes full of ruckus. It would be easy for me to keep an eye on his activity and further unravel his existence and understand his motivations.

If I can manipulate the waves he creates correctly, then I can use his faction to mask my existence as well.

"That doesn't sound very promising, but again I don't know if Ayanokouji wants to involve himself in this." Hirata said again, looking at me.

"Uh. .I don't mind as long as you don't involve me in any direct confrontation."

Hirata tilted his head thinking about what I just said.

"I mean, you and Ichinose might not be able to hold meetings frequently now. I can pass information between you two and uh . . run away when needed." I made clear I didn't want to be involved in anything directly, I wanted to operate mostly behind the scenes.

"I understand your caution, thanks for your support Ayanokouji-kun." Hirata said, extending a hand towards me.

Taking his hand it was decided I will be supporting Hirata in future. I looked at Ichinose who had pushed me into this again, she was looking at her watch again.

"Ayanokouji-kun's room is a pretty convenient place to meet up right?" Ichinose said.

"Yeah, this guy is always free," Hirata added a rather hurtful remark.

"Nyahaha, and no one would even suspect this place to be our meeting point."

I looked at Horikita who seemed a little perplexed by this sudden change in direction of the conversation. She felt a little pity towards me on hearing them.

Something two loners like us could understand, popular kids like Ichinose and Hirata were different from us.

They both grew silent abruptly as if my uncomfort slowly dawned upon them. The silence grew more awkward as five seconds passed then ten.

RING

The sound of my doorbell broke the silence, at a time like this who could be to come to me?

"I will check it."

Ichinose ran to the door and opened it, an adult was standing there.

"Ichinose Honami?" He asked.

"Yep!"

After a brief exchange she turned back with a box in her hand.

"Happy birthday Ayanokouji-kun!"

"Huh?"

"Happy birthday, man" Hirata greeted me as well. Horikita was still surprised by yet another unexpected development.

Ichinose unboxed the cake on the table and took out another box which looked like a gift from her bag.

I don't remember mentioning my birthday to anyone in school, so how did she figure it out?

"We saw it alongside your contact info,"

Understandable.

Hiarta answered, casually reading my thoughts again.

"You didn't need to do all this,'' I said to Ichinose.

In the whiteroom we were taught birthdays are something one celebrates with their family, friends or lover. However, for me it had been just a day when I grew a year older.

I had never experienced the emotions of celebrating it before.

"Yeah, we just wanted to celebrate it." She answered back amiably.

"Why wasn't I told about this beforehand?" Horikita inquired.

"Knowing you if we told you then you won't come." Hirata answered with sound logic. He took out a small present from his pocket. Looking at it I can guess it is a pen, rather expensive one.

"I wanted to celebrate our victory in relay race as well but I didn't get the chance." Hirata said as he handed the box to me.

"That was victory of our class."

"But you win the relay race, not to mention the lead others had."

Ichinose handed me her gift as well.

Horikita who wasn't prepared for this naturally lacked a present to offer.

I didn't mind it to be honest, but to my surprise she started searching her bag.

After a few moments she took out a geometry box. After a brief moment of hesitation she handed me the compass in it.

"This is for you, take good care of it."

As if handing me an ancient relic she nodded at me with same seriousness she always has.

Respecting her resolve I nodded back at her.

"Now then, it is time to cut the cake birthday boy." Ichinose said as she extended a plastic knife which came with the box.

Birthday boy?

"Uh. . Ok." I started cutting it.

Ichinose took a picture of me doing it. I looked at her for a second.

"I won't send it to anyone don't worry."

Since I took her photo in maid outfit once, I didn't have the right to complain right now.

This event is to celebrate my birth, they wanted me to be happy about my existence.

However, there was no merit for them in this. Why are they doing it? Perhaps they are faking it to gain a favour?

I looked at Ichinose who smiled back amiably as she took a bite of cake.

"Tastes cool!"

No … she is genuinely happy.

Chapter- 2

Chapter- 2

(Ayanokouji's POV continued)

"Ayanokouji-kun, Horikita-san, do you guys have time to spare after this?" Ichinose asked eating the cake. I didn't have much to do anyways so I didn't mind gaining more experience for this.

Hirata wasn't asked, apparently he was a constant in her equation.

"Yeah."
"What for?" Horikita asked.

"Ehh, Hirata and I had pre ordered food for the celebration tonight. If you haven't had your dinner yet then why not have it with us?" Ichinose extended the offer.

"Okay."

"And what if I say no?" Horikita asked.

"Nyahaha, then I guess the three of us will have to eat your share. But it won't take much time. I will go and bring the food right away! After all, we can celebrate with Ayanokouji-kun only once a year" Ichinose tried convincing Horikita.

"Hmmm, not more than thirty minutes though." Horikita gave her a small leeway.

"Aight! Here I go!" Ichinose stood up but I stopped her.

"Wait, I will go and get the food." I said. At this point, them doing so much for me just doesn't feel right.

"No,no,no. Birthday boys don't work on their birthday." Ichinose taught me like a small kid.

"Uh. .but-"

"Ichinose, let it be. I will go with him and we will bring it faster than you." Hirata came to rescue his fellow teammate.

"Hmmmm, oki if you say so." There was a mutual understanding between those two. Hirata got out with me.

It was getting chilly, both of us wore full shirts since sweaters would be an overkill.

"Busy day, huh?" Hirata asked as we passed the lobby.

"Nah, it was pretty plain like other days until now."

"What? Didn't you get super popular after winning that relay?"

"My non-existent popularity is still a far cry even compared to your state right now."
"Still, there would be people approaching you today right?" Hirata moved on to the topic of my birthday.

"I am not proud to admit it, but you guys are the first one."
"I see, we chose a time towards evening, thinking that you would be busy during the day."

"Well that wasn't the case."

"Damn, now I think we should've come to your house earlier in the afternoon."

"I don't mind either of the time." While I wanted to say I was expecting them in the afternoon, I refrained from doing so to avoid throwing light on my situation.

We both reached the pallet cafe and Hirata went ahead to receive the order. It was already prepaid or else I would've paid the bill.

While walking back there was an awkward silence between us, however as we came out of the Keyaki mall Hirata stopped.

"Ayanokouji, now that we are alone I would like to ask you once again," I turned around to look at him.

"Do you really want to join me?"
"Why do you doubt it now?" Given the fact that he had talked to Ichinose beforehand about the party, I had tentatively assumed that the part of recruiting me was also scripted.

"Because at that time it seemed like Ichinose employed you forcefully to keep an eye on me." But that doesn't seem to be the case.

"Didn't you guys discuss it already?"

"No, I hadn't revealed to her my true motives. That is why I feel like she has pushed you into this out of the blues,"
I looked at Hirata carefully, he didn't seem to be lying.

"It is true that was unexpected, but if I was opposed to it I would've stated it by then." I reassured him.

"I see, then you don't have any problems right?"

"None."
"Then if you don't mind there is something I want you to look into."
"Hm?"
"What I think is that traitor isn't the only character who has been hidden from me till now."

"What do you mean?"
"Besides the traitor's actions there are many more events that don't explain themselves."

"Like?"
"During the sports festival, our table wasn't only leaked, as you remember it was changed as well. However, that change didn't bring forth any damage to our class, rather it was a helpful one."

Hirata wasn't dumb, now that he was analyzing the situations actively instead of controlling the class, it is natural he would observe incongruence I left behind to fuel the chaos.

"That is true."
"I think there is another person who is operating from the shadows, but right now their intentions aren't clear to me."
"That is a bold assumption, but it doesn't seem completely off either."

I complimented his reasoning, with a hint of warning.

"Since Karuizawa was bullied on the cruise ship, I had expected her to have a breakdown. However. . ."
"However?"
"What happened was actually opposite, during the sports festival she worked actively to catch the traitor. I have known her, she wasn't contributing to the class ever."

"Maybe she wanted to take revenge on the traitor?" I asked. I am not supposed to know about her past according to Hirata. Now is the time to test how much information Hirata is ready to entrust me with.

"I don't think she is the type who would be able to fight back." He said after a brief moment of pause.

"From what I can see I think she would've chased the traitor down fearlessly." I pressed him further.
"Believe me Ayanokouji, I have known her enough to understand that the change in her wasn't born by the desire of revenge." Hirata deviated from that point and asked me to assume him right.
"I see. So you want to say that these two occurrences are connected?" It seems like these are the two events Hirata finds dubious, or perhaps he knows more but isn't ready to reveal it to me yet.

"There is a good chance, I can't imagine a group of individuals operating from shadows, it has to be one person."
"Hmmm."
"If possible, I would like you to investigate this matter, Ayanokouji-kun."
"You expect a lot from me, I will try not to disappoint you." With this I took the matter into my hands.

"That puts me at ease."

We both started walking again.

"Now that you have asked your questions, I would like to ask you something." I said.

"Hm? What is it?"
"Why did you want me to join you?"

"What do you mean? You were willing to join yourself and I needed more people."
"If that was the case there were plenty of other guys who would help you with this, there wasn't any particular reason to allow me to join you."

"I in particular don't have many talents you can utilize either except that I can provide you intel on Ichinose Honami, which you can obtain yourself as well."

"Man, you creep me out sometimes."

"So, why do you want me to join you?"

A chilly breeze flew past us, Hirata answered after a moment of silence.

"Why? Because I feel you hide something and that you have a few answers that I am trying to find. Your assignment to the Dragon group had caught my attention but I brushed it off, however in the sports festival I realized there is more to you than I can see,"

Revealing my abilities had caused rifts, Hirata had been connecting all the strange occurrences in the class.

"Even as we speak Karuizawa is investigating Matsushita, her assignment in the Dragon group has also caught me off guard." But it seems like he is still scattered.

I stayed silent thinking if I should argue my way out of Hirata's suspicion or confess that I am the one he is looking for.

As long as Hirata thinks that there is someone else controlling from the shadows, he will not be able to serve as a facade for me. His reactions will giveaway when time comes.

"So you are saying that you want to keep me near you so that you can keep an eye on me?" I asked him.

"That is a part of it," Hirata's tone grew softer.

"I have witnessed you making calm judgement on the cruise ship when Karuizawa was bullied, I was an emotional wreck at that time,"
At that time Hirata was ready to barge in and beat Manabe to death if he wasn't stopped earlier. I was the first one to signal him to stop however it was Horikita and Ichinose who actually stopped him.

"Even in the sports festival, I made a fatal mistake of doubting the wrong person. Which threw the class into disarray. I don't want that to ever happen again, that is why I wanted an advisor like you Ayanokouji-kun."

"I see, so you want me to stop you when you lose it?"
"Yes,"
"If you expect that from me then you should be willing to answer my next question." I put my condition.

"And that is?"
"Ichinose had concluded that you weren't doing anything out of ill intentions, thus the question naturally arose: why are you doing all this suddenly? What are your true motivations?"

[A/n: Guys . .just in case... you said you will bring the food faster.]

"I don't think that I can tell you that. . . ."

"If you want to establish a partnership then you need to tell me that much. If you insist I won't tell Ichinose about it." I reassured him. Right now, if he doesn't confess then there would be no reason to partner up with him.

Both of us are getting close to each other in hopes to unravel the true personality of the other individual, I can't afford losing that race.

Hirata stayed silent for a few moments and then confessed about his past, it was all of what Karuizawa had told me earlier.

"In the end I couldn't afford to repeat that mistake ever again, ignoring my friend at a time like that. I must've lost my humanity. Now that I see it happening again, it all returns back to me."

"That is the reason you are overcome by your emotions I assume."

"Yes, and that is the time I need you to guide me."

Once again, his past doesn't justify all his actions. However, I feel that if I push him further it might backfire.

We shook hands in agreement.

RING

My phone rang in my pocket, I took it out. The screen read the name Ichinose Honami.

"So much for bringing the food fast." Hirata said and we rushed back to the dormitory.

On the door of my room I found Horikita who had just exited, it seems like Ichinose called me when she wasn't able to keep Horikita.

"Let's get in and eat," Hirata said and got into the room.

"Well, it will be faster than cooking food or buying now." I said to Horikita and she followed us.

The meal Ichinose and Hirata had ordered was nothing short of an extravagant feast. It was something that a Class D student would only eat once a year.

Once we were done eating Hirata and Horikita returned to their rooms, Ichinose stayed back to help me with the dishes and ultimately brew some barley tea.

Ichinose hummed amiably and did the dishes. I went into the kitchen with barley tea packets in my hand. She noticed me standing and washed her hands to be done with her work.

"So, how did you get Koenji to work?" I asked directly.

"Ah, you still remember that,"

I nodded back at her.

"I had begged Koenji to join us, however he didn't comply with me. Apparently it was Nagumo senpai who got him to work and he told everyone that I did it."

Koenji being convinced by Ichinose was already confusing, but now it just exceeded itself.

"And why would he do that?"

"I don't know, he said he would support me and he wants me to join the student council." I recalled Nagumo's speech, his favours might've saved Ichinose but it would be naive to think it was for free.

"How did he do that?" The question that bugged me the most.

"I don't know, he has asked me to meet him soon. If he tells me anything I will tell you."

It seems like Nagumo has taken an interest in Ichinose. While exploiting his interest using Ichinose appears like a charming option, at the end of the day he is a troublesome individual.

In the relay race and in the Chase tag, it was Nagumo who was the reason for my miscalculation. From the look of it he has already targeted the elder Horikita, if somehow he realizes me as his next then my attempts of staying low will all become futile.

I need to get further information on him from the president.

"Don't involve yourself with him further." I commanded Ichinose.

"But I can't just avoid him after he helps me."
"I know, just keep yourself out of his schemes. If you join the council now, then it will create complications for the class."

"I. . okay." She reluctantly agreed.

I handed her the barley tea packets, for a brief moment she was confused. Having barley tea after eating so much wasn't something recommended. But I wasn't sure when I would get the chance to drink it again next time.

"Fufu."

As the water boiled we stood there in silence, although it wasn't getting uncomfortable.

"Ayanokouji-kun, I am sorry for earlier. I pushed you to join Hirata-kun out of panic." She apologized.
Since her actions had aligned with my motives I didn't feel any particular need to oppose it. However, I didn't mind getting an apology.

"..." I stayed silent, waiting for her to further elaborate her intentions.

Her train of thought was predictable but I wanted her to put it into words.

"It's just that even though Hirata-kun promised that he won't bring any harm to his teammates, I had seen confront me when he was driven by emotions. Sooner or later he would hurt someone and be hurt himself, I just wanted to avoid that at any cost. . ..." With nothing more left to say she kept her head low.

I didn't forgive her immediately to see how she would react.

"Here . .. I will give you barley tea." She extended the cup towards me.

I wanted to discuss further matters about Kushida with her, but I left that matter for some other day and sipped my barley tea.

Chapter- 3

Chapter-3 (Ryuuen's POV)

"Thank you Ryuuen-san."

Since he used her to lure Yamauchi during the first semester, this was the second time Ryuuen had dealt with Kinoshita.

"Get lost." Once she confirmed the transfer she dragged herself out of the Karaoke, seemingly she was recovering well from the hairline fracture.

"It is high time Ryuuen, the class is waiting for a clear explanation of the sports festival results," Ibuki said the moment Kinoshita was out of the room.

Alongside her, Albert, Kaneda and Ishizaki were present in the Karaoke.

"Do you want me to kick you out of here?" Ryuuen wasn't in a good mood.

"What?!"
"Call Manabe, ask her to report here immediately with her lackeys."

"What on earth are you speaking? I don't even have her phone number."

Ryuuen had been silent about the results of the sports festival for which the whole class was scheming, Ibuki deep down suspected that he might've gone nuts after some sort of defeat.

"Tch, useless as ever. Kaneda does it."

"Yes, Ryuuen-san."

Kaneda obeyed the orders and within a few minutes all three of the girls were in the Karaoke, all dressed in casual wear. The lack of makeup depicted the haste they suffered to reach Ryuuen ASAP.

When Ryuuen's eyes met those of Manabe he smiled.
"You know very well why I have called you here Manabe."

Manabe was already out of breath but she started sweating heavily once Ryuuen stood up for the interrogation.

"I-Is there anything you want from me?"

Ryuuen looked into her eyes and Manabe looked away for a brief moment then forced herself to look at him again.

"The more you play dumb the more you will regret it later."

He wasn't completely sure before, but now the doubts were slowly erasing themselves as the other girls started panicking.

Ryuuen's lackeys stood there confused, trying to understand the situation but none of them dared to question him.

Ryuuen took out his phone and played an audio file. It was a recording of Ryuuen mentioning his plan for trapping Horikita.

"Sound familiar?"

"Y-Yes, we all framed Horikita together."

"Oh Manabe, I wished for us to be in this together. But I must face reality now, someone from our class had leaked this recording to Class D."

"..." Manabe was left speechless, she was told this recording was to intercept Ryuuen's strategy. She didn't expect that person to send the recording to Ryuuen himself.

"Hah!"

With a swift move Ryuuen grabbed her jaw and forced her to look at him.

"Maybe you know who our little traitor is?" Under the immense pressure she was already feeling the strength fade away from her legs.

"I-I"

"Yes, go ahead."

"I am sorry Ryuuen-san! I was being blackmailed."

"Good, that is what I want to hear." He wasn't displeased in the least, he was enjoying every moment of it.

"Wait! What is going on?!" Ibuki demanded answers, her growing confusion was too much for her to bear at this point.

"One of you three recorded me narrating the plan against Suzune.." However, Ryuuen ignored Ibuki. He started walking around Manabe and her friends in a circle as he interrogated them.
"Y-Yes.."

"In order to minimize the risk you did it with someone else's phone and later transferred the recording."

". . . I am sorry." Yamashita squeaked meekly.

"You should know that recording was sent to me as a threat at the end of sports festival,"
"W-Why . ." Once again, Manabe was confused as to why the recording was sent to Ryuuen without informing her.

"Why were you betrayed? Why else? You betrayed your class. No one can guarantee you salvation."
Small tears rolled down the faces of all three girls, their worst fear of being caught by Ryuuen Kakeru had just turned into reality.

"From tomorrow you three will be out of the food chain, you will not be my classmates anymore."
You will be preyed upon, relentlessly.

The message wasn't spoken out loud but they understood their fate. Ryuuen's gift for intimidation was most useful at times like these.

"Unless,"
In one word they found hope.

"Unless what?! Ryuuen-san please give me another chance!" Manabe exclaimed.

"Not so fast," Ryuuen stopped them.

"First I need details from your side, once I get those details I will decide whether to give you a chance or not."
"Y-Yes!" Yabu, who was silently crying, felt a little relief again.

"Take a seat," Ryuuen commanded them.

"Ryuuen-shi, I think it is time you tell us a little before they give out their details." Kaneda had outlined a rough sketch of what was happening but it was time he heard it from the mouth of Ryuuen himself.

"Hmm very well," Unlike Ibuki Ryuuen respected Kaneda's inquiry.

"This recording was sent to me when I was one step away from taking the points from Suzune. I was able to kowtow her but I wasn't able to extract the points."

"I see, but how did they track the exact time of your meeting with Horikita-shi? We never mentioned that anywhere, do you think that they contacted her before the meeting?"

"That is unlikely, not saving Suzune the whole time. Then suddenly saving her once she is completely destroyed, it would be pointless."

"Was he trying to save the private points?" Ishizaki asked.

"It was pure coincidence, the timing doesn't have any clue in it. As the mail I got was an empty one, it is safe to conclude that the other party didn't have any interest in interfering with Suzune's apology."

"So the other party welcomes the idea of toying with Horikita?" Kaneda pointed out.

"X, the master of Class D, is very clearly telling me that he's aware of the strategy I came up with by sending me this audio file. Since he knew about my plans, he could have avoided the attacks I had targeted against Suzune at the sports festival. He should have been able to prevent Suzune from being defeated and being forced to apologize altogether, same goes about Ichinose Honami who was doubted by her classmates. However, this X deliberately ignored these openings. Despite knowing my strategy, I was allowed to rout Suzune, and of course, she suffered due to this. She didn't expect that she would be hurt, and the results of the competition for Class D weren't going to improve. On top of all this, there's the guilt of having hurt someone else. Her mental state should be in a pretty bad place."

Ryuuen summarized for them to understand.

"By not revealing his cards before, 'X' plans on using it as concrete evidence once the plan mentioned in the recording was carried out successfully."

"That would be the logical conclusion, however, 'X' never used this file and we are already well into October. It is too late to use it at this point."

"He sacrificed Horikita but didn't use it for his advantage, his motives are getting harder to understand." Ibuki was still trying to wrap her head around all this.

"'X' doesn't seem to care much about rising to Class A. At first I wasn't sure but now that I look at how he handled the sports festival, reaching Class A doesn't seem to be his priority."

"Perhaps Ryuuen-shi is the first priority of 'X'."
"Good, now shut up and listen to these chimps." Ibuki never had a chance to place her questions but it was already too late, Ryuuen didn't plan to waste anymore time explaining things.

Under Ryuuen's gaze the three girls cowered. The room grew silent again.

"How did 'X' contact you?"

"Via mail."

"Operating on an anonymous account I assume."

Manabe nodded slowly.

"Do you have any evidence left?"

"N-No, they asked me to delete all of it."

"Understandable."
"On what basis were you blackmailed?"
"They said they had a picture of the three of us bullying Karuizawa."
"You didn't fall for an obvious bluff like that did you?" Ryuuen had made sure that there wasn't any evidence left, there wasn't any room for doubt.

"H-He sent us a picture." On hearing those words Ryuuen's eyes widened.

For a moment he went silent and recalled the events. The leaders of Class D who he was expecting there, Hirata, Suzune and Ichinose; none of them were cunning enough to take a recording or create evidence for the situation.

Their first response would've been to directly intervene into the matter and reprimand Manabe on the spot. However, unnaturally when Ryuuen entered the scene , none of that had happened.

While that was unnatural he brushed it off, the next objective was to make sure that the witnesses were eliminated.

According to Kushida she was going to take care of Suzune and she reported to have executed the plan accordingly. On top of that she had mentioned that Hirata was also eliminated during that process.

Ryuuen himself took care of Ichinose who was hiding behind the control panel and he didn't sense any other presence in the room. Thus the natural conclusion would be that there was someone else, perhaps still at the exit.

[A/n: For those who forgot this was the situation]

"Do you have the picture?"
"We deleted it alongside the evidence."
If he could see the picture once, it would've revealed the position from which it was taken.

"Did anyone from the rabbit group know about Manabe and Karuizawa?" The question was directed to Ibuki who was in the same group.

"Yes, Yuukimura once sighted them and tried to interfere. But he was brushed off."
"If I am not wrong then Yuukimura is one of the top students of Class D when it comes to academics." Kaneda highlighted. Ryuuen heard him with a bored face.

"Hmmm."

"Before blackmailing you for the sports festival did 'X' blackmail you for anything else?"

"Yes, they asked me to leave Karuizawa alone, or else they would reveal the evidence against us to school."

"Hmm, so 'X' is concerned about Karuizawa's safety. Very interesting." This soft nature was something one would expect from Hirata or Ichinose.

"Maybe 'X' is from the rabbit group?" Ishizaki said. Ryuuen ignored him.

"I-I don't think so." Manabe interfered with the discussion.

"Why?"

"On the last day of the cruise ship exam, 'X' asked me to investigate a few phone numbers. When I did so I found out all of them were phone numbers of Dragon group members of our Class including Shiina."
Ryuuen's palm twitched once; he had reported a fair number of VIPs in that exam. However, on the very battleground that he was fighting he had lost.

"Now it makes sense how Shiina was discovered." Kaneda concluded.

"That means 'X' is from Dragon group-"
BAM!

Ryueen stuck the table, Ishizaki's lips moved but his voice didn't come out any further.

"Now, you don't speak any further Ishizaki or I will kill you,"

"So you are saying you have betrayed me not once but twice, how do you think you will survive Manabe?"

"I prostrate myself Ryuuen-san, I . .. I can't do anything else at this point," Her state of denial had ended and now she was accepting her situation.

"That means you will do anything that I say,"
"Yes." She said, bowing her head.

"Kukuku, very good. I will give you a chance to redeem yourself, but you must pour yourself into it. Even if it means emptying your cup."

"I-I don't deserve-"
"Shut up. What you deserve or what you don't is for me to decide from now on."

"Yes."
The probability of 'X' being in the Dragon group was high, however, ruling out the possibility that he was acting behind the scenes to help the Dragon group isn't null either.

He might've been in some other group, but had a grasp of the situation through the pawns acting on his command. After that working with Ichinose he could've used Manabe to crack the Dragon group.

On top of that, to demand the safety of Karuizawa, yet sacrificing Horikita. These two actions contradict each other a little, the prospect of Ichinose or Hirata influencing his decision related to Karuizawa also exists.

"Go for now, I will contact you later." With that the girls left the room.

"What should we do next?" Kaneda was the one to break the silence.

"Contact Kanzaki, arrange a meeting with him tomorrow after school."

"Right away."

--

The next day after school, Karuizawa and her friends were roaming in the Keyaki mall. Chatting amiably among each other they entered an accessories store, after the victory in sports festival thanks to the third years and second years who won the overall Red team vs White team battle for them.

"Hey hey! I like this small BTS keyring!" Nene Mori exclaimed at the chibi.

"I think this is the last piece available in this store." Karuizawa noted.

"Yeah you guys don't mind if I buy it right?"
"Sure thing, I didn't have much interest in BTS anyways."
Once Karuizawa gave her permission Nene approached the ring.

"How about that one?"

"Yes, that is the one I wanted for so long."

Manabe and her friends were on the other side of the shelf looking at the same keyring.

Their eyes met with those of Karuizawa for a moment.

"Hey, you, stay there, we will take it." Manabe commanded Nene and rushed to the other side of the shelf.

"I am sorry but I took it first." Nene said, grabbing it in her hands.

"There isn't some first come first serve rule, give that to me. Nanami had been saving points for over a month now to buy this." Manabe ignored Karuizawa and attacked Nene further.

"T-That is a lie this piece came in a week ago only."
"Whatever, give it to me." Manabe started snatching it from her hand.

Class D girls looked at Karuizawa, at first she wasn't sure how to react but now she didn't have any other choice. Afterall, Ayanokouji had affirmed that Manabe and her friends won't bug Karuizawa again.

"I am sorry you two but I will be taking that one." Karuizawa announced as she sntached the ring away from Manabe.

"W-What the hell?" Manabe's fear was apparent in her voice, feeding on it Karuizawa gained confidence.

"Now if you will excuse me I have to go." With that the Class D girls left the scene.

"Thank you Karuizawa-san. I thought I had lost it."

"It's okay, you treat us to a smoothie today to celebrate this."
--

In the following evening Kanzaki and Shibata are waiting behind the special annex, for someone who never showed up on time.

Soon, three people entered their vision. It was Ryuuen, Kaneda and Yamada Albert.

"I didn't know this sunshine was into shady business, that's new." Ryuuen said, hinting towards Shibata.

"Shibata has a habit of discarding the existence of danger, meeting danger face to face helps to counter that." Kanzaki replied on his behalf.

"Anyways, what do you want to talk about?"
"About Class D, about what they did in the Dragon group."
"Ah yes, the Dragon group. It was an admirable attempt to hide the VIP, however you failed." Kanzaki rebuked Ryuuen.

"Yes, do you know why I failed?"

In accordance with the deal with Horikita, Kanzaki was supposed to claim he reported the VIP of Class C. However, from the way Ryuuen is talking he has grasped that it might already be too late to fool Ryuuen now.

"Don't get started that someone from Class D is again pulling strings against you."

"Exactly. Let's say 'X', made contact with me at the end of the sports festival."

Shock was apparent on Kanzaki's face, he had suspected that there might've been someone like that during the cruise ship. But after he saw Class D getting destroyed by Ryuuen in the sports festival, he was convinced that no such existence was there.

Ryuuen, who was exceptionally perceptive, observed Kanzaki's shock and concluded that he doesn't know the identity or the existence of 'X'.

"What did 'X' say?"
"Nothing, it was a threat that didn't need words. Let's not get derailed, my point is that 'X' exists. What I want to know is which side are you on?"

'I don't want to get involved in this mess.' He said in his head.

His answer was clear. Denying help to Ryuuen might have a backlash but selling out 'X' and joining the opposite side would eventually lead for 'X' to come after Kanzaki.

This was the last thing he wanted, for someone who gave Ryuuen a hard time to come after him.

"What do you plan to do?" Still Kanzaki thought hearing out Ryuuen would be better than rejecting his proposal right away.

"'X' is aiming for Class A, if I don't shoot him down here then he is bound to come for you." Ryuuen lied, 'X' was least interested in rising to Class A. But Kanzaki's insecurity was readable by Ryuuen.

"And for that you need my help?"
"More like it is a favour in exchange of another favour."
Ryuuen would take out 'X' in exchange Kanzaki would help him in doing so, mutual benefit.

"As long as I feel my anonymity is guaranteed I will comply."
"Good, now tell me what is your guess on 'X's identity?"
Kanzaki thought for a moment then said.

"Maybe Hirata? He had been acting suspicious since the sports festival began. Or the guy from Dragon group you were looming over(Ayanokouji), the girl named Chiaki Matsushita is also suspicious since there wasn't anything special about her but she was exceptionally sharp I can tell." Kanzaki gave his honest opinions.

He could've mentioned Horikita but he concluded she was just a pawn.

"Kukuku, bravo. You seem to understand the situation well." Kanzaki had listed a fair set of individuals.

"Hirata had been missing out on soccer practice as well since the sports festival. Not only that his way of talking and such have also changed, he isn't surrounded with people anymore," Shibata stated.

"On top of that even I feel a little uncomfortable approaching him." He added.

"Hirata is a fine wine, I will let him age before consuming him." Ryuuen said, his eyes shining with anticipation of pleasure.

Kanzaki narrowed his eyes on witnessing the twisted side of Ryuuen Kakeru.

"Anyways if that is it, then we will be leaving."
"Yes, you can go now."

[A/n: well long time no see, I wonder how many are still around to read this]

Chapter- 4 (Rules)

(A/n: As always I can't change much in rules but it must be included so here it is.)

Chapter - 4

We were all instructed to wear our jerseys and recommended we prepare several spare jerseys and underwear. Once we were done with that we were told to board the bus.

From what it looks like the whole student body is migrating at the moment, it would be safe to say it wasn't just a field trip.

Chabashira-sensei sat near the driver seat towards the front end of the bus, as expected from our school the interior of the bus had a regal charm to it. The journey began, there didn't seem to be any restriction or monitoring on us, so most of the students indulged in leisure activities.

Some passed the time away while others played games. Presumably Horikita was reading her book and Ichinose was chatting amiably, in spite of all the vitality in the air, the student sitting beside me didn't show any signs of happiness on his face.

"H-Hirata-kun, would you like to have these rice balls?"

Hirata, who was sitting beside me, was least interested in it. He gestured her to go away, swallowing her pride and the girl went back to her seat.

"You see it coming, don't you?" Hirata muttered.

"Hmm, it is too cold outside, I wonder if this will be a field trip."

". . . . I think this will be another special exam."

"Now that you say it, it does seem to be the case."

"I will be taking the command of the class, I want you to be by my side." Hirata said in a vulnerable tone, perhaps he is thinking about different possibilities and ultimately seeing where my role comes in.

"Right now there is no use thinking about it, we don't have enough information to make any solid plans."

"You're right."

The fun continued for an hour, however eventually Chabashira-sensei stood up.

"Sorry about cutting your fun short but pipe down."

Chabashira said that to the students while holding a handheld microphone in her hands.

"I thought you lot might like to know where this bus is going and what we'll do then."

"Of course we're curious about that. You're not going to tell me it's the uninhabited island again, are you?" Receiving Ike's complaint, Chabashira answered.

"Looks like what happened on the uninhabited island is hard to forget for you lot since it's sticking around in your memory. But calm yourselves. An exam of that scale isn't something that can be held frequently. It means we're not cruel enough to force you into that now that summer's over for you lot. However, as you may have already inferred, a new special exam will be held. Your living standards will be extremely high compared to the uninhabited island."

She said that but it's not something particularly trustworthy. Leaving aside the uninhabited island, up until now there have been special exams held that ordinary students would have considered difficult. Most importantly, a student will be forced to directly confront the pitfall known as expulsion that lurks behind the special exams.

"I'll explain the details of the special exams to you lot." The students of our class had tackled many special exams together, recently they have developed a new sense of unity within them thanks to Ichinose and Horikita.

The fact that the explanation will take place in the bus means that from this point onwards, it's possible to prepare countermeasures to a certain extent or I'll at least have the chance to do so. Since we were still in motion, it's forbidden to carelessly get up from your seat but inside the bus, one's voice will easily reach everyone. If you use a phone then it's possible to talk only with a specific person.

Even Ike and the others who are usually very rowdy, immediately stopped to listen to what Chabashira had to say. Even if it's just this, it still shows that they've grown somewhat.

"From this point onwards, you will be taken to an outdoors school deep in a certain mountain. In all likelihood, we'll arrive at our destination before another hour passes. The shorter the explanation takes, the more of a 'grace period' you will have available."

So this means there's approximately one hour to go until the special exam starts. Even if it takes 20 minutes to conduct the explanation, that still leaves 40 minutes. That much time would be left for me to formulate a strategy in regards to the special exam. That's probably what she meant by 'grace period'.

Outdoors school. Since I haven't heard of that word before I took up my phone to look up the word on the net.

"Outdoor school usually takes place in summer, I don't know why they are pulling this on us now. But, one thing is for sure it takes place in a calm place." Hirata casually answered my thoughts again, I put down my phone without switching it on. Few things about him still haven't changed it seems.

"Opportunities to meet senior students normally...especially for students not participating in any club activity are limited. But at the outdoors school, we'll be taking collective action that goes beyond school years for 7 nights and 8 days. It's like something beyond even what the sports festival offered. The name of the special exam that will be taking place is 'Mixed Training Camp'. Since you'll still be anxious if it's just a verbal explanation I'll be distributing the materials now."

Chabashira began walking and handed over a bundle of the materials to the student sitting in the front row seat. We each took one and passed the rest behind.

The material itself was rather thick and amounted to multiple pages. Since we weren't instructed in particular not to go ahead and look, I flipped over and looked through it. There were pictures of what appears to be the training camp properly included.

Rooms where students can sleep, large baths, cafeterias and the such are included. Seeing all this makes it look fun, or rather, like reading a travel guidebook though... But it's inevitable that every important word regarding the special exam we see would make our moods somber.

Even if it's a special exam, there's the relatively thick paper we were handed on top of the verbal explanation. Not too long after, it appears everyone got their hands on the paper. After confirming that, Chabashira continues speaking.

"Feel free to read ahead but I'm going to go ahead with the explanation for the Mixed Training Camp. Since I'll be collecting the materials before you get off the bus, make sure you understand the rules well. I'll be accepting questions at the very end so make sure to shut up and listen. Do you understand that?"

Chabashira said so as she looked at Ike again. Ike made two or three zipping motions over his mouth.

"This time around, the special exam will be a training camp focusing mainly on mental development. In order to accomplish that, we'll start with the ABCs of integrating into society and we'll confirm whether or not you can live in harmony with those you don't interact with commonly. And each and every one of you will learn it."

So would that be the reason why we'll have to take collective action alongside the senior students? Before coming here, Manabu had contacted me and Nagumo had contacted Ichinose. It seems that those two had seen this coming.

Chabashira said so as well but students engaged in club activities will have established relationships between senior students and junior students but even so, most of that will be limited to club activities only.

Students outside of that category will have had absolutely no contact with the senior students and those students aren't a minority by any measure. Essentially it'd have been great if such exchanges were to be carried out voluntarily without the need to use club activities as an intermediary but it's also a fact that reality isn't that simple. However, how exactly are they going to involve the senior students in this? Unless contact between us isn't an absolute necessity, then just like during the sports festival, students will probably keep their distance.

Well, we're probably heading over into the mountains for the 'training camp' to ensure that doesn't happen though... Either way, as long as the rules for the special exam aren't properly set, it's easy to figure out loopholes. There's a massive gap between the 1st years and the 2nd years in terms of physical and mental development.

For teenagers, the period of a year is very significant. It won't be by that much but we probably won't be able to fight against them on equal terms.

"First off, once you lot arrive at the destination, I'll have you split up based on gender. Then you'll hold a discussion across all school years and then you'll divide yourselves up into six groups."

The explanation had just begun but Chabashira continued on without stopping.

"The lower and upper limits for the number of people in a group have been decided. Look at the fifth page of the material in your hands and have a good look at the patterns for the number of people written down there."

All at once, the students turned their eyes to look at the fifth page of the material. It appears the rules pertaining to the groups in the training camp are written there.

"When establishing a group, there's both a lower and an upper limit to the number of people that can be in it. That number has been calculated from the separation of boys and girls as well as the school years. For instance: - If there are 60 boys in the same school year then 8-13. - If there are 70 boys in the same school year then 9-14. - If there are 80 boys in the same school year then 10-15. will be the lower and upper limits for a group. However, if the number is below 60 then please refer to the special section."

That was written there. If there is no difference in the ratio of boy to girl across school years then in theory one class should have 40 and if the ratio of boys to girls is 5:5, then the total number of boy for the 1st year would be 80. 10-15 would form one group and in total, six groups would be formed. The fact that they referred to the total number of students means that depending on the number of expulsions for the entire school year, the amount of people required would change as well.

"I think you're already aware of it but the fact that the division into /six is based on gender means that you'll have students from other classes mixed in when the groups form. Also, for the duration of the outdoors school, you'll have to overcome the special exam with that group. It means your fates are tied to one another."

"We can simply divide ourselves, Class D, into two groups and that'll be the end of that. That's what it means, right?" Ike shouted across the bus.

"That sounds good but things won't be that simple. The rules don't permit a group to be formed from just one class alone. As long as the number of people in your group meet the quota it doesn't matter which class you team up with but at the very least, there needs to be two classes or more mixed together."

That statement of Chabashira's also happened to be properly written under the heading of dividing up people. "Each group must have students from at least two or more classes as a prerequisite."

"Of course, it's not impossible to try and form a group composed of students from your class as much as possible. As long as there's even a single student from another class then you'll have formed it after all."

In short, make two groups and go with the lower limit of 10 people. And of those, 9 would be from Class D. If we do so, we can form a group that's 'mostly Class D'.

"Is it better for a group to have many people? Or few people? That will have a significant impact on the 'outcome' I am going to explain now."

"The groups will be something akin to temporary classes formed for the outdoors school only. However, even if it's only temporary, the contents of it will be intense. Members of a group will take lessons together, will cook and wash together and will even bathe and go to bed together. You will experience daily life of all different kinds together."

If they knew that they'd be taking baths and going to bed together, both boys and girls alike would scream.

However, what remained in the bus was silence. Students weren't so ready to mix up with the other classes that too in daily life outside just school time.

"How the outcome of the special exam will be decided, that will depend on a comprehensive exam that will take place on the last day of outdoor school. A rough idea of the exam's contents is written on page 7. Go through it."

We were told to do such, and inevitably everyone checked it simultaneously.

"Morals" "Mental Discipline" "Order" "Individuality"

Subjects we would never have to learn in an ordinary school were lined up there. In other words, I should view this as an exam separate from things like English and mathematics, which fall under academic ability. The troublesome thing is, there is no 'clear answer' in an exam like this.

There is information on each subject in the materials we were given but they are all abstract. There's nothing about how exactly, in detail, the exam will be conducted.

Furthermore, I looked at a sample schedule. After we wake up, we'd work on our morning assignments. Then we'd gather at the dojo for Zazen and then we'd go to work (such as cleaning).

Then we eat breakfast. Afterwards, we'll study various things in a classroom. After that, we eat lunch. We then receive assignments for the afternoon and once again we practice Zazen. Then we'd have dinner and a bath and go back to bed. It's an entirely different lifestyle from the one we've lived up until now. By the way, unlike our usual holidays, lessons will be held throughout the morning on Saturdays.

It appears we'll only be able to rest on a Sunday.

"More details on your schedule will be announced upon arrival at the outdoors school. What kind of special exam will take place and in what order on the last day is also something I cannot tell you at this stage."

It means that we'll have to play it by ear for the duration of the special exam. It could be that the subject they listed as 'Zazen' will also be a part of the exam. It would be best if I assumed little things like posture and attitude will also influence the exam.

Other than that, words like 'speech' and 'fabrication' are also disturbing signs.

"Deciding your groups is of utmost importance. All six groups must be as one and must be capable of overcoming a week of the camp. No matter what the reason may be, you are not allowed to withdraw from your group halfway through or change members. If a student is forced to retire from either sickness or injury, then the group must deal with that gap on their own by assuming 'that student exists'".

In other words, if there's discord between us or if we antagonize one another, then we won't be able to proceed. More and more it's starting to look like on top of forming our groups, we'll also have to eliminate the other classes.

Full-scale lessons will start on Friday morning, that's tomorrow, and until Wednesday next week there will be lessons held at the outdoor school. And also, on the 8th day which will be a Thursday, all school years will take an exam simultaneously and we will be graded.

"After the 1st years have established their groups, they will rendezvous with the 2nd and 3rd years who will have established their groups at the same time. In short, it means six groups will have formed numbering around 30 to 45 people composed of 1st years up to 3rd years."

The situation's already a chaotic one, having to form groups amongst fellow 1st years, but other school years will be added to the mix as well. As soon as that fact was conveyed, a strange atmosphere came over the bus interior.

I looked at Ichinose, she didn't seem particularly troubled by the idea but it didn't seem to ring any bells either.

"If I have to put it simply, the groups you'll be forming with your school year are the small groups and the groups that will be formed from all school years will be the large groups."

Each and every group we form from our school year will be 'small groups'. The small groups will rendezvous with small groups from the 2nd years and the 3rd years and ultimately we'll end up as six 'large groups'.

"Now moving onto the important topic: the outcome. That will depend on the 'point averaged' from the exam results of every member in the six, large groups. It means the talents of the other school years will also play an important role."

Basically, an average point will be calculated from all 40 people making up a large group. What worries me is the difference in the number of people. If it's an average point we're talking about, even though it should be hard for inequality to creep in, depending on how the small groups are assembled there could be a considerable difference in the number of people once we form a large group.

The crucial thing here is 'how to form a large group'. If this is an exam where we'd simply have to compete against one another in terms of academic ability then it's obvious the large group where all the talented students have gathered will win.

Conversely, students judged talentless will inevitably be chased out of the top groups and will have to form low ranking groups. However, it's not like you're guaranteed to win out in this special exam just by gathering talented students.

"You've gotten the gist of it to a certain extent, haven't you? Now for last, I'll be explaining the most important thing here. That is, to say, the result of this special exam's outcome."

So basically what we'll stand to gain and what we stand to lose, huh? Once again, the reason why we're divided based on groups and not classes should be hidden here.

"For large groups whose average points put them in 1st place through 3rd place, all their students will receive private points as well as class points. For large groups that come in at 4th place all the way down to last place, let's just say you'll receive a demerit."

The details regarding the outcome was, of course, also written on the materials we were given.

"Basic Rewards."

1st Place: 10,000 private points. 3 class points.

2nd Place: 5000 private points. 1 class point.

3rd Place: 3000 private points.

The aforementioned rewards will be distributed to each and every student.

If in a small group of 10, 9 happened to be from the same class, they will stand to gain 27 class points by coming in at 1st place. Of course it's only describing an ideal scenario but it would be for the best if we could collect students from the same class to the utmost of our ability and come in at 1st place.

However, the more people we have, the greater the damage we'll sustain should we lose. Furthermore, if the number of people increases, the more difficult it will become to control the group.

By the way, the minus factors that concern me hold far more weight than the few plus factors there are.

4th Place: 5000 private points.

5th Place: 10,000 private points. 3 class points

. 6th Place: 20,000 private points. 5 class points.

The aforementioned points will be deducted from each and every student.

Private points and class points won't fall below zero but it'll remain behind as cumulative deficit and it'll be calculated out whenever we receive rewards in future exams. It can be said that this is an element that hadn't been present up until now. The reason why one would feel the rewards for 1st place through to 3rd place are somewhat lacking is because there's a huge trick behind it.

On the subject of rewards, this sentence was written down. Chabashira went ahead and read it out.

"It's set up such that depending on how many of a particular class is present in a small group, the reward may be doubled. On top of that, the more people there are making up a small group, it will be amplified even further. These are rules that apply for 1st place through to 3rd place and this won't apply for the deduction for 4th place and below so relax."

If two classes make up a small group then 1st place through to 3rd place will be rewarded as aforementioned but if it's composed of three classes then both those points will double. If it's composed of four classes then it will triple.

Furthermore, since the amplification appears to change depending on the total number of people, 10 people would cause it to be multiplied by 1, 15 people would cause it to be multiplied by 1.5 at most.

This would be an exception but if a group should be formed with 9 people in it then it would be multiplied by 0.9 in that case. According to calculations, the greatest reward for taking 1st place would be triple if students from all four classes are present and in addition, for a group with the maximum number of 15 it would be multiplied by 1.5 (rounded to the nearest integer) and each person would receive 45000 private points as well as 14 class points.

So far, this covers the good parts of the special exam and a troublesome yet interesting part also exists.

However, you could say that what's truly important is what comes after this.

"Also, the large group that comes in at last place will incur a massive penalty."

"Penalty...it can't be."

"That's right. It's 'expulsion'".

That penalty, which in itself is no longer a surprise, was revealed.

"Still, it's not like we're going to expel everyone in the large group that places last. Because if we did that then we'd have approximately 40 expelled students on our hands. The criteria by which the expulsion will occur is limited to only the small groups whose average point falls below the borderline average point set forth by the school."

This is a rather troublesome setup. The overall ranking will be calculated from the average points of the large groups yet when it comes to expulsion, it's the average point of the small group that matters.

"If a small group should happen to fall below that border, then their 'leader' will be expelled."

"How exactly will that leader be chosen?" Hirata asked.

"You will discuss it within your small group in advance and elect one. That's it."

"What the hell? Who the hell would want to be the leader when expulsion's on the table."

Going forward, I wonder just how many students would volunteer.

"There are upsides to it too. Students who are classmates of the leader will receive double the reward."

"...double, you say?"

Horikita, who had been silent up until now, muttered in surprise.

"That's right. The greatest reward for this special exam would be consolidated by the 12 students from Class D within the group. And the remaining 3 will be drawn from A, B and C each. On top of that, if the leader happens to be someone from Class D and you manage to take 1st place then..."

"W-What'll happen then?" Yamauchi, unable to perform the calculations, rubbed his nose excitedly.

"1.08 million private points. 336 class points. Is what you stand to gain."

"T-Three hundred and thirty six!" If we acquire that then in one stroke, our class will change significantly.

It depends on the score the other groups receive but it's not impossible to rise up to Class A in this exam.

The more risks you take, the greater the rewards. Moreover, the chances of receiving that greatest reward aren't low by any measure.

"After the small group has been established, you'll need to discuss amongst yourselves and decide on a leader before daybreak of the next day. If, by any chance, you are unable to decide on a leader for your group then your group will be immediately disqualified. In other words, all of you will be forcibly expelled. Of course, there haven't been a single group in the past so foolish as to be unable to decide on a leader and be expelled."

So the school won't be the ones deciding. It's something that's up to the students to decide for themselves. Naturally, we'd end up quarreling while attempting to decide on a leader.

However, if by the end there still aren't any candidates, then we'd have no other choice but to decide it with a lottery or a game of rock-paper-scissors. It's inevitable considering everyone would know that they could be expelled.

In a situation where it's already going to be difficult bringing it together as one, there's also a high possibility that the unity of the group will be a doubtful one.

"Also, if the leader is to be expelled, they can choose another person from their group to bear joint responsibility and be expelled alongside them. You could say it's sort of like dragging them down with you."

"H-Huh? What's with that? That's f*cked up! By appointing some random guy as leader, does it mean we'd be able to crush the leaders of the other classes that way?"

I doubt something like that can be accomplished this easily. If we're going to be electing a leader then naturally we should select and screen him to a certain extent.

A student who's clearly a throwaway pawn won't simply be made the leader. If such a thoughtless act were to be allowed then that's on the group. There aren't any students who'd be willing to self-destruct for the sake of their comrades and drag a student from another class down with them in the first place.

It'd be a different story if that student happened to be chained down in Class D and already harbored thoughts of dropping out anyways but information about students like that will probably spread around anyways.

"Relax, it's not like just about anyone can be made to bear joint responsibility. Only students who are a contributing factor to the group falling below the border, as judged by the school, will be liable for that. Like deliberately failing or boycotting the exam, unless you do such things there'll be no problem."

Certainly if that's the case then you could say that both the leader and their group members are well protected. However, for this exam, one can't help but doubt the way the leader ought to be. Things are different this time around compared to previous special exams.

What I should focus on is the fact that the assignments for this special exam will be shared across all school years. And that the same explanation is probably being given right now on the other buses as well.

I need to assume that right now, at this very moment, all sorts of strategies are being laid out. Not just the 1st years but also the 2nd years fighting their own 2nd year fight and the 3rd years fighting their own 3rd year fight.

To clear up my doubts, I sent a message to a certain man. Because I wanted to know whether or not the 'student council' had a hand in this special exam.

"One more important thing, the expellee's class will be receiving a proportionate penalty as well. The details of the penalty change depending on the exam but for this special exam, in the case of expulsion, 100 points per person will be deducted. In the case of class points being insufficient, it will be calculated out over time. Until then, it will naturally remain zero."

The magnitude of the consequences remain the same as before but the minus is a substantial deduction. Yet another essence of this exam. The selling point of being a leader is that the points to be gained would double but on the other hand, they'll have to accept the risk that is expulsion.

Unless they're allocated to a group that they're confident will do fine, there wouldn't be a single person willing to raise their hand. However, they won't be able to hand over such a perfect opportunity to the other classes either.

On top of that, there's also the joint responsibility to consider. Rules that are like blind alleys have been set.

"And with that, the explanation ends. I'll be accepting questions."

Ichinose immediately raised her hand.

"If an expulsion occurs...is there any way to extend a lifeline?"

"If you're expelled, you're expelled. Nothing to be done about it, right?" Such words came from Sudou.

"As a last resort, you can buy a 'cancellation of expulsion' with private points but of course, the price will be high you know? Cancellation of expulsion...in other words, as a general rule a 'lifeline' will be equally in demand by all school years. To extend a lifeline to a single person, 20 million private points and a further 300 class points must be paid. This is, at most, just a lifeline and the penalty that will be incurred upon expulsion won't be waived. Of course, if either of the points required happen to be insufficient then you cannot use a lifeline."

A lifeline that requires a tremendous amount of private points isn't something you could possibly pay for. For the current exam, a minimum of '400' class points are the prerequisite for a lifeline. Students who are disposed of via expulsion probably won't be bailed out in the first place. Because in order to save one, the entire class would be losing a great sum.

"It appears we must avoid expulsion at all costs, or else there won't be any comebacks from that." Ichinose said in a low voice.

"There isn't much time left until we reach our destination. How you choose to utilize this time is up to you. Once we arrive, I will be collecting the materials I've handed out. Also, the use of cell phones will be forbidden for a week. I'll be confiscating them soon. Other than that, you're free to bring along daily necessities and gaming equipment but you won't be allowed to bring along foodstuff. Things that cannot be stored long term, such as meat, will have to be either eaten before arrival or thrown away in the garbage bag upon alighting. That is all."

Students who did not give much of a reaction to the explanation of the special exam raised their voices at that. Although they've already experienced the same thing on the uninhabited island, it must be difficult having your phone confiscated for a week.

"I have a question!"

Ike excitedly raised his hand. Chabashira gives a bitter smile.

"You said boys and girls will be separated but exactly how far apart will we be?"

"There are two buildings at the outdoor school. The main building will be used by the boys and the other one will be used by the girls. The buildings are next to one another but in theory, you will be living apart from each other for a week. You won't be allowed to go outside without permission during recess and after school either."

"So that means we won't be able to talk to one another?"

"No, each day for an hour at the cafeteria in the main building, both boys and girls will have their meals together. It's only within that period that the school won't issue any instructions. In other words, you're free to do whatever you want then. Do you understand?"

"Yes!"

"If there aren't any more questions then I'll be ending this."

Maybe she decided that only silly questions would be forthcoming as Chabashira wrapped things up immediately. I took up my phone and sent a few more texts.

The bus was silent for a while, this was the time when Hirata used to get up and take the lead. However, he didn't show any signs of moving.

Ichinose looked at us, and after giving me a small nod she stood up.

"From what sensei said, it doesn't look like we have much time but first of all, I'd like to hear everyone's opinion. On how to overcome this exam. What sort of partition we should aim for in groups."

"For something like that, wouldn't it be best if we could get as much of our classmates in it as possible? We select our best and form a small group of 12 and the rest we can bring it one from each of the other classes. Ain't that perfect?" Sudou was the first to reply.

"That would be ideal, however, it would become a group shamelessly aiming to win. Most of the classes won't accept it. .and even if they do. ."

"Then?" Ike scratched his head.

"Our academic abilities aren't being tested directly, still if we form a group with the majority of our class then naturally other classes would do the same. A group consisting majorly of Class A or Class B students would have more chances of winning than us. By no means am I doubting our abilities but not acknowledging our opponent could prove fatal."

Just as she said, even though it wasn't about academics, the Class A or Class B group would obtain a better average than our class. The discipline, individuality and such unquantifiable traits; the average of those classes would be ahead of us. Only class we had a chance to beat directly in it would be Ryuuen's class.

"Uh oh, I see."

"But if we make equal groups then likes of us will get pushed into the losing groups, we also want to make some private points for ourselves." Yamauchi complained.

"In regards to that, if everyone agrees then we can distribute whatever we earn in this special exam equally among the whole class. Since transfer of points is permitted there won't be a problem with it."

"Ah yes that sounds good."

"Nice."
The students who weren't confident in themselves supported this movement eagerly, however those who were going to earn it for themselves weren't exactly enthusiastic for it.

No one voiced any opposition to Ichinose even though they wanted to, under the pressure of Ichinose Honami their thoughts were getting suppressed.

"Well then if everyone agrees to it-"
"I am afraid you won't be having my support in this policy for commoners." The one who interrupted Ichinose was none other than Koenji.

"But . .." If it was someone else Ichinose would've employed reasoning to it, but Koenji wasn't someone on whom this would work.

"I agree with Koenji here, generosity is good and all but to share it all equally? Everyone in this class is going to work hard for it but the results we produce will vary, sharing the rewards amongst us evenly would be like saying you pay a doctor and a sweeper the same salary."

Yuukimura supported Koenji on that matter. In the test he himself might not gain much points since the outcome would depend on the performance of the group more than the individual, still he isn't foolish enough to ignore that.

What he is saying right now isn't for his benefit in the coming exam but to make sure that Ichinose doesn't employ policies like this in future.

Ichinose listened to his words carefully and considered them, right now she was in a tough position, she had to support the one falling behind while making sure that it doesn't become a hindrance to the achievers of the class.

"It looks like our opinions are divided, I understand where you come from but we are short on time. So we should settle this ASAP with a majority vote." Ichinose suggested.

"Everyone who is in favor of equal distribution please raise your hands." Ichinose said as she raised her hand.

Hirata, who was sitting besides me, didn't show any signs of raising his hand. Ichinose was a little shocked but in the end it was decided that equal share won't take place.

"Now to the next matter, boys and girls won't be able to contact each other frequently so we will need to have leaders for both of them,"
"I myself and Horikita will lead the girls, however for boys. . . ." Everyone slowly turned to Hirata.

After a moment of silence he stood up.

"I will lead them, you need not to worry." Hirata said.

"Horikita, I want you to lend me your pen." He said to Horikita, at first she was bewildered but soon she understood what he meant to say.

"Are you sure you will need it in this exam?"

She asked him looking directly into his eyes, out of all things she didn't want to risk her newfound weapon named Sudou.

"Yes."

"Very well." The class witnessed their exchange with a perplexed expression.

Horikita took out a pen from her bag and signaled Sudoku to come to her. Reaching out to her excitedly she muttered something to him and he nodded twice then thrice.

"Woah woah what's happening?" Ike, who wasn't able to contain himself anymore, jumped out of his seat.

Sudou walked away from Horikita and passed the pen to Hirata, it appears that the agreement between Horikita and Hirata has passed.

Ichinose looked at the exchange with a worried expression, our eyes met for a second. According to our agreement I will be keeping an eye on Hirata and company to make sure that they don't do anything reckless.

"Well then it is settled, Hirata will be leading the boys."

In the coming exam I was expecting a lot of skirmishes to surround me, however there wasn't much point about worry about them right now.

Chapter- 5 (Arrival)

Chapter- 5 (Arrival)

"Students will hand in their cell phones when their names are called and alight from the bus. Ayanokouji, Ike—".

Chabashira performed a roll call of the boys in syllabary order while having them start alighting from the bus. I turned off my phone and placed it inside the plastic box set beside our teacher. Upon alighting, an unfamiliar teacher approached. And we were then instructed to wait a slight distance away from the bus.

After this point, the boys and girls were separated, there were two big school grounds. Two old fashioned wooden buildings apparently for boys and girls, the size was enough to accomodate all of us. Both of them were separated by the two school grounds, seemingly there won't be any sneaking into one building from another.

We were instructed to move into the boys' building. Along the way, in a room that appears to be a classroom of some sort, there was no air conditioning installed but rather a stove had been placed at the center of it. Probably starting from tomorrow, we'll have lessons in classrooms like that one. We then passed by what appears to be a gymnasium.

The boys from Class A and Class B arrived, and they looked in our direction. Afterwards, Class C entered and next up would probably be the 2nd and 3rd years. We were instructed to form a line, stand still, and wait for further instructions.

As the boys from upper years gathered, the chit chat between the first years died out.

Not too long afterwards, someone who looked like the teacher of a different school year stood up on a stage with a microphone in hand and spoke to the students.

"I'll assume you've all received a prior explanation in the bus regarding the contents of this exam and that you've digested it. As such, there will be no further explanation of it here. Now then, we'll be forming our small groups here, so I'll have you set aside time for this. Each school year will hold a discussion in order to create six small groups. Furthermore, as for the formation of the large groups, it'll take place at 8 pm today. That's all,"the teacher said. "This is supplementary information but when it comes to partitioning the groups, irrespective of size, the school will not interfere. And we will not act as arbitrators either."

On hearing this, the school years distanced from each other. The second year had instantaneously formed the groups. This level of coordination couldn't be a result of maturity alone. It seems they have a head, who is controlling all their movements and according to what Elder Horikita had told me, it seems that head is Nagumo Miyabi. But to think they would be able to coordinate the rival classes so efficiently.

Meanwhile, among the first years, Class B blatantly assembled in droves.

"As you can see, we Class B intend to form a group with these members. And as you can see, right now we number 14. If one more person were to join us, we'd meet the prerequisite number. Now then, we're looking for people willing to join us."

The one who said that was a student from Class B named Matoba. Katsuragi was also among the 14 that had gathered, but the one leading them was the boy named Matoba. Apparently, Katsuragi had lost his influence completely since the result of the sports festival.

"Hey! That's not fair!"

"That's not true. On the contrary, it's fair. The remaining three classes can create three groups consisting of 15. In other words, wouldn't it be fine if you form groups just like ours? And then it will be a fair fight among the classes." Matoba was a well spoken person, truly fitting to replace Katsuragi as the leader of boys in absence of Sakayanagi.

"What should we do now, Kanzaki?" Shibata asked as he witnessed the situation.

"Wait."

"In that case I'll give you 5 minutes. Please make your decision by t—"

"Oi oi oi, you little bum, stop spoiling the fun here." The one who interrupted Matoba was Ryuuen Kakeru. But Matoba himself didn't seem to be intimidated by him.

The Class B boys were in a group of 14, but Ryuuen walked towards them alone with his hands in pocket. Under his pressure, the rest of the group condensed to take less space.

"I am talking logically, Ryuuen, or are you not confident in your lackeys?" Matoba taunted him.

"I don't follow the orders of some crippled girl."

Albert, Ishizaki, and other guys joined Ryuuen as well. The school had just announced they won't interfere with making groups. Starting a fight would be a bad option, but looking at the situation, one can't be sure when fists might start flying.

Hirata, who would usually stop this fight, witnessed it from the sidelines.

"I am extending a good offer to you Ryuuen. Send one of your lackeys to join us. They will be safe from expulsion, I guarantee it." Matoba tried reasoning with Ryuuen.

"Kiss your idea goodbye, you won't be farming that way."
"That will just leave your class out, the rest three of us will form the groups and you lot will have to form a similar one ultimately."

"I am afraid it is the other way around." Hirata intervened. All the eyes moved at him.

"Kukukuku, you see my boy Hirata won't let your groups fly."

"What do you mean, Hirata?! You are a reasonable man, you should understand that this is the best way to avoid any expulsions."

"Avoid any expulsions? I will find other ways to avoid it myself."
"There is no way, you Class doesn't have that much point in first place—"
"The exam is to learn 'social integrity', just go with the theme and mingle around with us." Ryuuen said in a sarcastic manner as he looked at Hirata.

"Yes... this is, but a chance to get to know each other better."

Both of them needed information from the other class in order to gain a lead on their investigation. Forming groups made up of the majority of classes would defeat the purpose.

One would rarely get to live with students of another class throughout their school years. It would be no less than a miracle for this exam to show up when they needed information from other classes the most.

Matoba saw the tables turning on him slowly.

"Kanzaki, you aren't going with all this, are you?"

"What you suggest only favours you. If you all form a group majorly of your class then it would mean for me to give up in the first place."
While that was a stretch, Kanzaki's point was justified. If people from Class B did gang up, then Class A would face a cutthroat challenge which they would risk losing.

Kanzaki is a cautious person, but it seems he understands that prudence isn't in avoiding danger but in taking calculated risks.

"Kukuku, now that all three classes have withdrawn their support, who will you form your group with?" Ryuuen asked Matoba.

The ideal situation Sakayanagi was preparing them for has been rejected.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" Matoba said in exasperation.

"I have a suggestion." Kanzaki broke his silence.

"Huh? Go ahead." Matoba replied.

"There are eighty boys in our year, and we must divide them into six groups. I suggest we make four groups of fifteen and rest two groups of ten."

[A/n: In case my explanation was lacking I will keep doing calculation in parallel: (15x4) (10x2) = 80]

Everyone listened to Kanzaki silently. A few , like Ike and Sudou, had problems keeping up with his calculations.

"The interest you might've here would be in the four groups of fifteen. The composition of those groups would be that one class would have three students in it.his class would consist of the leader of the group. The remaining three classes will have four students each, thus making a total of fifteen."

[A/n: 4443=15]

This way, even if the leader class wins they would only have three members, so the difference between the amount of rewards won't be gigantic.

Apparently Kanzaki was formulating another plan while Ryuuen and Hirata were taking down Matoba. Kanzaki's plan promotes equal share here, of risk and rewards. This would be the best route for him since his class is already Class A.

However, it also provides the classes a good opportunity to spy on each other. Right now it would be hasty to conclude if Kanzaki is just acting for his own benefit or if he is helping Ryuuen from the sideline. Still, I will assume both possibilities tentatively.

"The four classes will have one group of fifteen that they will be leading. I will lead my group. I assume Ryuuen and Hirata will lead their groups. What about your class?" Kanzaki asked Matoba, but he didn't seem prepared for it.

He looked at Katsuragi then shook his head.

"We will tell you after we are finished discussing."

"Very well, if you all understand, then go ahead. Make your squads that will form these four groups." Kanzaki ordered them.

"Wait, what about the last two groups of ten?"
"We will discuss them once we are done with the four primary groups."

Hirata and Ryuuen left the scene to form their squads, so not intervening with Kanzaki was their sign of approval to this plan.

"Hey, Hirata, are you sure that this is a good idea?" Ike asked him.

"Hmm."
"Right now, I will divide the class into squads of four people. As for the three person squad which will be the leader of a group, I will volunteer for it myself. I will take Akito and Sudou with me." Hirata looked around to see if anyone had any problems. But only silence followed it.

"Very well then, for the four people first off both the Minami, Sotomura, and Ijuin team up. For next—"

Hirata started making the squads. He slowly sorted out all the students. Looking at the pattern, he is keeping a balance of students with abilities paired with those who would prove to be a burden.

"Ayanokouji, I will be keeping you with Koenji. He might sabotage the group if he decided not to contribute to it. That can prove fatal."
"Uh, it might prove fatal, just as you say."
"Yes, I am putting Yuukimura in that group as well, alongside Makida. Those two are competitive ones; they won't let the group average drown."

What Hirata is saying might not hold value when the other classes start drowning since two students alone won't be able to carry the whole boat.

However, what these two would guarantee is that we would be taken up by some other class leader. For expulsion to loom over any of us, first the leader himself must be threatened with the same, which the leader won't let happen at any cost.

At first Yuukimura showed signs of retaliation when Hirata constructed our group, but soon he swallowed Hirata's decision and tagged along. At the end there were five students left, which were broken into groups of three and two respectively left for the two groups of ten.

Once we were done, our class rendezvoused with the other classes. From the look of it, they are also ready with their squads, and now we can make the small groups at last.

"We will start from forming the groups by picking up four men squads from the rest of the classes. For instance, my class will get the first pick from Class B, after that Class B will get first pick from Class C and so on cycle will continue until we are done with the formation of four groups of fifteen." Kanzaki announced a pattern which would give everyone a fair choice.

"Very well, I will be the leader of my class. I am choosing Katsuragi and Takamoto with me." Matoba said.

"I will be choosing the squad with Yahiko, Morishige, Machida, and Kitou." The group was an odd one but Kanzaki picked them up.

Picking up the best of the other classes isn't the answer to form the winning group here. You must pick up the students that you can manipulate into working. Since if they do not respect you as the leader, then they won't be actively participating to make the group stand out, even if they want themselves to win.

I have seen Yahiko Totsuka with Katsuragi before, so he might still harbor some rebellious feelings against Sakayanagi.

"Very well we will chose—"

[A/n: I know you aren't interested in what Matoba picks.]

Once Matoba was done, it was Ryuuen's turn to pick one of our squads. Ryuuen himself was accompanied by Kaneda and Ablert.

Ryuuen walked around a bit and then stopped in front of Koenji, who was standing in a corner acknowledging his reflection in the mirror.

"What comes with this one?" Ryuuen pointed at Koenji and asked Hirata.

"Koenji Rokusuke, Yuukimura Keisei, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, and Makida Susumu." Hirata recited the names.

"Very well, that will be my pick."

It seems for the coming days I will have to hide in the same room as Ryuuen Kakeru.

Hirata's previous connections were vast, thus he was able to pick up what he wanted from the lot. As he got the first choice to pick from Class A, by the looks of it, he seems to be focusing on academically talented students.

The cycle continued and, sooner rather than later, the four primary groups were formed.

"Now, what do we do about the last two groups? Who will be the leader for those?" Matoba asked Kanzaki.

"In the ten man group there will be two people from two classes and three people from other two classe. I suggest that the class that is sending two people in the group do rock paper scissors and decide the leader."

The left out groups weren't exactly made up of worthless students, since each class had distributed worthless students in the four man squads earlier so that they didn't face any risk of expulsion.

"Hmm."
Once that was done, all the six groups were formed. It took us a considerable time until around sunset, when we were finally done with deciding all group members and the leaders for the other two groups.

[A/n: Guys I can try naming all of the groups but it will become an ultra lengthy and tedious task, so I will keep revealing the group members prior to any plot contribution they might have.]

Sigh*

Makida sighed deeply once the groups were done.

"Man, things were getting tense there." He prompted a conversation with me.

"Yeah, we are going to live with Ryuuen. Are you okay with that?"

"I don't know, I will just lay low and hope he doesn't notice me."

"Same."
"You can always run away once they mark you, haha." A joke born after my performance in the relay race, perhaps I should laugh at it.

"Uh... yeah." Nevermind.

Kaneda approached us with a friendly smile.

"Ayanokouji-shi, looking forward to working with you." He extended his hand.

"..."

"Yeah, I am looking forward to it as well." We shook hands and he went away.

The second and the third years seemed to be discussing something amongst themselves. That was the time when Nagumo looked at us...? What thoughts might be going in Nagumo's mind.

A senior student approached us, seemingly, on Nagumo's order.

"Looks like you all are done with forming small groups."

"Yes, we are done with it." Kanzaki replied.
"That's cool, we are also done making them. We will be making large groups now. You all walk to Nagumo who is standing there in the middle of the hall."

"Very well."

We walked to the boys from other years. As expected from Nagumo, they had already split into six small groups to make it easier to understand. However, it didn't seem we had much of a choice here.

Two-thirds of the big group was already decided by the time we came, that is to say that the third years and second years had already joined their small groups to make a big group. We were only there to be chosen to add up into those big groups to complete it.

"Take your pick Horikita-senpai, this is a fair and square game after all." Nagumo said, spreading his hands.

He looked at us as if looking at toddlers, smiling gently. But his smile vanished when our eyes met briefly. I averted my gaze, but I could sense Nagumo still staring at me.

"Which one of you is Hirata Yousuke?" It came off as a surprise but Manabu requested Hirata to step forward.

Hirata raised his hand and walked forward.

"You will be in our big group. I am looking forward to working with you."

Hirata shook hands with him and thus the first big group was decided. The other seniors went ahead and picked the small group they judged fit, however no one seemed to pick our group which was led by Ryuuen Kakeru. Seemingly, he has earned himself a reputation in other school years as well.

Another thing that I noticed was that Nagumo wasn't choosing any group, they were talking about some challenge, perhaps it is part of it.

The last group that was left was ours ultimately and the last one to pick a group was Nagumo Miyabi. Thus the big group Including Ryuuen and Nagumo was born out of the process of elimination.

First Ryuuen, now Nagumo...

Chapter- 6

Chapter- 6 (On the girls' side)

(Sakayanagi's POV)

"No way I am spending my days with her!"

.

.

"Hey! I want to be with Kozue-chan!"

.

.

.

"This all to hell. I will not join your group!"

Amidst all the chaos, I hummed peacefully. All of this is taking more time than I had expected it to. It seems there is a reason behind it.

"Nooo, Manabe is scary. I am not going in her group." A girl from Class A shrieked.

"..." It happened again.

For instance, a selective number of girls would glance at the silver haired student standing behind me. She wore a slightly bitter expression.

"Perhaps you would like to assist them, Shiina-san."

"Ah, I think they can sort it out themselves." She broke out of the spell when I called her out.

"Very well."

All the four of our classes came to a consensus to form the strongest small group with me.

Our group was the one which was destined to win . Even when forming the large group, the seniors won't be able to resist our gathering.

Group consisted of:

Three students from Class B, namely: Masumi Kamuro, Sakayanagi Arisu, and Ryouko Nishikawa.

Four from Class A: Hitomi Taskabe, Sayo Ando, Mako Amikura, and Yuki Himeno.

Four from Class C: Shiina Hiyori, Mio Ibuki, Mariko Yajima, and Tusgumi Sasaki.

Four from Class D : Ichinose Honami, Horikita Suzune, Kushida Kikyou, and Mei-Yu Wang.

A grand line up presented by each class to carry us to victory.

"All of the squads are done, however, Karuizawa and her friends still remain." Horikita, who was leading her class, said to Ichinose.

Ichinose, understanding the limitations of her ally, took the matter into her hands.

"Karuizawa-san, right now if we keep sticking to our friends then this test can end badly. We need to distribute ourselves evenly in the small groups."
Seemingly the girl named Karuizawa wasn't ready to get into a group which didn't have her friends in it.

"Ughh fine, but I am keeping Satou with me."

"Satou is better off in another group right now. Your presentation skills are splendid, we need to make use of it in your group." Ichinose replied.

"Damn it, then who do I pair up with?"

"Nene Mmori and Kokoro Inogashira can group up with you. Both of them excel in a field of their own, your group would be perfectly balanced that way. Knowing you, you can make it with them, right?"
"Yeah fine, those guys aren't half bad either."
"Alright, then it is settled."
Horikita stood at a distance and watched the conversation unfold.

"Horikita-san..."
She turned back elegantly when I called her, long hair swaying beautifully.

"Yes?"
"You are famed for your achievements in the past exams, achievements exceeding the limits of Class D name."

"I don't plan on being in Class D forever."
"Oh my, you have been giving Ryuuen a hard time."

"It is his own shortcomings that troubles him." Without skipping a beat she answered, all while looking directly into my eyes.

I must admit she is a splendid actress. Anyone who wasn't hinted about the truth beforehand won't be able to see through her.

"Fufu, you're a very interesting person."
Understanding I had nothing else to talk about she went back to her job.

"What? No, we won't accept Karuizawa in our group!" Ichinose had already faced rejection from different Class C girls in major groups whenever she tried placing Karuizawa in it.

"We have to put our differences aside for this matter and form small groups. This exam is going to test our social integrity." Ichinose tried reasoning with the girl from Class C.

She didn't realize her words fell on deaf ears. Her reasoning wasn't going to convince them to accept Karuizawa who they feared.

I had intel upon her, but it seems she is more intimidating than I have known her to be.

"No means no..."
Anyhow this has been drawn out long enough. Now I am getting bored.

"Manabe-san, you aren't afraid of her, are you?" I confronted Manabe. The girls hid behind her back whenever trouble cornered them.

"W-What do you mean?" It seems even Manabe is hesitating, but she won't be having a choice here.

"..." Once again a few individuals stole glances at Shiina Hiyori.

"I mean everyone seems to be frightened by the thought of living with Karuizawa, but you're different. You can match up to her, can't you?"

All the Class C girls looked at Manabe as if pleading to accept my proposal.

I looked at Karuizawa who smiled confidently at Manabe.

"I... I don't mind." She yielded. Apparently, she preferred avoiding Karuizawa as well. Ichinose and Horikita exchanged looks of slight unease, nodding at one other as if in a silent agreement, Ichinose approached Karuizawa.

Getting away from other students so that they can't hear them, both of them discussed for a few minutes. It was a small discussion, Karuizawa made a reassuring face, reluctantly they ended the conversation and groups were formed.

"Now that it is settled, we all should rendezvous with the seniors to make large groups." I announced.

The senior groups were already prepared. After a small discussion we left the gymnasium. Outside the gymnasium a few adults were there to guide the small groups to their rooms.

"For the coming days I will be the one guiding you all. Form a line and follow me to your room." A young lady, who stood out from the rest of the old staff, led us to our room.

The rooms had wooden bunk beds in it, and speakers were installed on the right wall. The speakers played a soothing melody that relaxed our tired minds.

"Wahhhh... that was a long day." Like a cat she should mention who curled on the nearest bed.

I sat on the bed adjacent to it, as Kamuro made her way to the bed right above me. It is convenient that she can make sound decisions without my orders.

"Horikita-san! Why don't you join us." Ichinose called out Horikita who was last in line.

Looking at other pairings Horikita decided to take the bed above Ichinose.

I sat there silently, looking at the individuals that filled our room. All of them are quirky, all of them are unique, but. .. none of them fascinate me. This boredom is getting heavier and even heavier to bear as time passes.

I slowly walked out of the room. Kamuro on noticing this started descending from her bed, but I signalled her not to. I roamed in the hallways to get some fresh air. As I strolled, I moved towards the centre of the building, and there was a beautiful garden.

There stood our guide. The young lady was adoring the colourful flowers while small birds flocked around her.

"I wasn't expecting to meet you here," I said.

"Well I did expect the daughter of Sakayanagi to be here." She replied.

"I can't hear the respect in your voice for your employer." I slightly warned her.

"Ah, yes he is a great man. I respect him from deep within my heart." Her empty words appeared to be a direct declaration of war.

Without waiting for my answer she left the garden, leaving me alone. With my mood spoiled I returned to my room.

"I am Sayo Ando from Class A. I can cook a lot of good stuff so if we get the breakfast duty I would be more than happy to lead us all."

Ichinose standing in the centre of the room heard everyone giving their introductions. It seems she is recharged again.

"That is great. I am looking forward to working with you too." Ichinose encouraged Sayo's effort.

"Now next would be... ah welcome back, Sakyanagi-san."

"Oh don't mind me, please continue your introductions. It is a shame I have missed a few."

"It's never late, next was Shiina Hiyori." Ichinose replied and turned to the girl named Shiina Hiyori.

"I... My name is Shiina Hiyori, I like reading books a lot..."

"That's nice, I also like reading books. Which genre do you prefer?" I asked her.
"I prefer mystery thriller and psychological thriller genres."

She answered in a little reserved manner but her excitement leaked out in her voice.

"Who is your favourite author? That is, if you have such a preference." I dwelled into further.

"I love the works of Agatha Christie and Dan Brown, but I am not biased against other authors due to my liking for them."

"I see, very interesting."

She stood up from her bed to approach me, but she understood that we were having an introduction for the room and sat down.

"Now, next would be ..." Ichinose looked at the bed above the head of Shiina.

"Don't look at me, I am not doing it." The girl names Mio Ibuki just wrapped herself in her blanket and turned her back on Ichinose.

"Well..."

And thus, the introductions went on

One after another, they described their distinctive traits and friendly similarities.
Soon we were done with the pleasantries, and people started connecting with each other. It was all the effect of one person, Ichinose Honami.

Horikita is being controlled by him, my instincts tell me. Ichinose is also a puppet under his control at this point. Well, there is no rush. I have a sweet week to deduce all about Class D and its working, since the headquarters of Class D itself is within this room. Whenever he sends signals, I can intercept them in parallel from here.

Something I look forward to very eagerly.

After a few hours of sunset we were called for dinner. There was a bonfire in the middle of the field. Tables and chairs were placed in a circle. looking at their numbers, it seems that we will be having dinner with all the three years.

There are multiple kitchens around this area, small units equipped with basic utensils and a heating cooking stove. Eventually all the groups gathered in the open area and took their seats, and a teacher walked to the center with a microphone to address us.

"The school will be offering meals for today but starting from tomorrow, provided the weather is clear, you will have to cook your own meals with your group. As for the amount and how to share it, you'll have to discuss it amongst yourselves."

Menus and instruction manuals were distributed to us. Once it all was done we were offered our meals.

Amidst all this I can't find our guide, our oh so precious guide.

(Switching POV to Ayanokouji)

This woman... she was there on the cruise ship, she is a mechanic, she is also a nurse and now it appears she is also a Zaizen trainer. Splendid.

We stood in a line with our plates in hand, waiting for our turn to get the food. I was the last in the line. It took a little while but soon it was my turn.

"How are you doing, Ayanokouji-kun?" She asked in a soft voice, a voice completely different from one which I heard on the cruise ship and in the school.

"Huh?"
"Meet me outside in the garden at 100 sharp. There is something you must know."

"Pardon my intrusion." Koenji didn't bother with me being there before him. He served himself the food and walked away.

(Switching back to Sakyanagi's POV)
[A/n: I am sorry I don't switch POV's that often but welp]

It was around midnight. A few of them were asleep while others were reading.

"Ichinose-san, do you know that back in 1960s hidden under the name Czech secret police there were people who conducted these events named as book reading sessions?"

Not only Ichinose but Shiina and Horikita also seemed interested in it. Kushida, who had just stood up from her table, and Mei Yu Wang's attention was also captured.

"What were these events hosted for?" Ichinose enquired.

"These were a way to determine a superior pupil." I deliberately left things unexplained to attract more attention.

"So what exactly happened in those events?" Horikita asked.

"Children will be gathered and told a story. Once they are done, children would be asked to give an interpretation of what they just heard."
"Interesting."
"..."

"I happen to know one of those stories,. Perhaps you all would be interested?" I said.

"Yes yes!" Kushida and Mei Yu Wang joined us.

Hiyori, who was also a story lover, took a seat near me. Horikita while still laying down, she closed the book.

"Very well then." The room was dimly lit since the lamps were our only source of light at night.

[A/n: Okay the following story is taken from the monster anime, I don't own the story or the pictures.]

Once upon a time, in a land far away, there lived a nameless monster.

The monster was dying to have a name.

So the monster made up his mind, and set out on a journey to look for one.

But the world was such a very large place.

The monster split in two, and went on separate journeys.

One went east.

The other headed west.

The one who went east came upon a village.

There was a blacksmith who lived at the village's entrance.

"Mr. Blacksmith, please give me your name!" said the monster.

"I can't give you my name!" replied the blacksmith.

'If you give me your name, I'll go inside you and make you strong," said the monster.

"Really?" said the blacksmith. "If you make me stronger, I'll give you my name."

The monster went into the blacksmith.

And so, the monster became Otto the blacksmith.

Otto was the strongest man in town.

But then one day he said, "Look at me! Look at me! The monster inside of me is getting bigger!"

Munch munch, chomp chomp, gobble gobble, gulp.

The hungry monster ate up Otto from the inside out.

Once again, he was a monster without a name.

Next, he went into Hans the shoemaker.

However...

Munch munch, chomp chomp, gobble gobble, gulp.

Once again, he went back to being a monster without a name.

Then, he became Thomas the hunter.

But soon...

Munch munch, chomp chomp, gobble gobble, gulp.

Back he went to being a monster without a name.

The monster next went to a castle to look for a nice name.

He came upon a very sick boy who lived in that castle.

"If you give me your name, I'll make you strong," said the monster.

The boy replied, "If you can make me healthy and strong, I will give you my name!"

So the monster jumped right into the boy.

And the boy became full of vigor.

The king was overjoyed.

He announced, "The prince is healthy! The prince is strong!"

The monster became quite fond of the boy's name.

He was also quite pleased with his royal life in the castle.

So he controlled himself no matter how ravenous his appetite became.

Day after day, despite his growing hunger, the monster stayed put inside the boy.

But finally, the hunger just became too great...

"Look at me! Look at me!" said the boy, "The monster inside of me has gotten this big!"

The boy devoured the king and all his servants.

Munch munch, chomp chomp, gobble gobble, gulp.

The castle was lonely now with everyone gone, so the boy left on a journey.

He walked and walked for days.

And then one day, the boy came upon the monster who had gone west.

"I have a name!" said the boy, "And it's such a wonderful one at that!"

But the monster who went west replied, "Who needs a name? I'm perfectly happy without one. After all, that's what we are - nameless monsters."

The boy ate up the monster who went west.

At last he had found a name, but there was no longer anyone to call him by it.

Such a shame, because Johan was such a wonderful name.

Once I was done narrating, the atmosphere of the room became heavier. Now was the time to strike.

"So tell me–"
"This is an emergency announcement–" The speakers installed to play music suddenly aired an announcement.

That voice... Father?

(Ayanokouji's POV not to present but a little while back)
The sky above the mountains was a truly magnificent spectacle. The silence felt like a blessing. But what waited for me wasn't something pleasant.

I made my way out of the room, making sure no one noticed me. I walked silently in the wooden corridors, towards the garden situated in the middle of our campus.

There stood a lady alone looking at the sky. As I reached there, the moon which was hiding behind the clouds revealed itself.

When I called her, she turned back elegantly like an untouched, tranquil lake. Her hair swayed like autumn leaves drooping down onto the water surface.

"Are you an instructor from a different generation? I don't have any memory of encountering you inside white room."

"Well, that is because we have never met face to face except once or twice," she didn't try denying it.

"No way. I have no memory of such an event."

"You were in diapers back then, I don't expect you to remember."

"..."

"What do you want from me?"

" After you escaped the White Room, you were not the sole escapee, there were many others, however not many survived.. My father worked as a statistician there. I followed his lead most of the time. Our primary job was to analyze your data. Since I was ten years old I had been looking at your stats day and night, adoring them, fascinated by the limits you were pushing,"

She narrated it like a small child telling their experience from school, but I didn't have time for that.

"Cut to the chase."
"...You've spoiled the mood now."

"..." I stayed silent to emphasize on the seriousness of the matter.

"Follow me," she said and started walking. I followed her as she made her way towards the exit of the campus.

A few steps short I stopped in my tracks. Noticing so, she turned back and said.

"It is your choice, either you walk out or he walks in...with his men. ."

That man was here already...

Chapter- 7 (stolen youth)

Chapter- 7 (stolen youth)

I took a deep breath, and turned back to look at the campus once again. After a few moments, I turned back and walked out of the gate, uncertain if I will ever walk back again.

The open field that was in between the two old buildings accommodate the students of Advanced Nurturing High School — the fortress I assumed to be impenetrable. However, it seems like that man made his move the moment I stepped out of the campus.

This faraway area from the school isn't heavily guarded as the main campus, so it was a natural course of action.

I walked out of the gate with the lady. The moonlight illuminated the grounds on which a total of six adults were standing. A black car was parked at a distance. It was a big one.

He was there, looking right at me. Except him, all the men wore what looked like night vision goggles. Two of them were guarding him while the other three were scattered.

[A/n: A is Ayanokouji L is the lady P is Papakoji and black circles are guards. Once again 'in the name of imagery put the image itself'.]

Silence flooded the place. There was no need for words, everyone knew what the plan was. For one last time, I scanned the area for any possible weapons, however, the only weapons I can use seem to be the taser gun his men are carrying.

The three men scattered around the place are carrying taser guns, while the two men guarding him are carrying pistols. Taser guns were to subdue me while the pistols were for emergency scenarios. The lady standing behind me didn't move a muscle. It didn't look like she was going to fight me, but I can never be sure.

A cold breeze of night wind passed by. The clouds slowly covered the moon and darkness loomed over the ground.

"Capture him alive."

I ran towards the bodyguard who was nearest to me. He was equipped with a taser gun and night vision, so I must take those into consideration.

Once I was within fifteen metres range from him, I stopped. This was the time he must need to move in order to subdue me or else the prongs of the taser won't reach me.

I heard footsteps of two more people approaching me. The time wasn't on my side. I must take a risk and settle it one on one with the target standing in front of me.

I swiftly approached him. Now that I was close enough I could see him, he didn't fire the taser gun. Rather waited for me to close in further.

"Very well."

In order to get a clean hit with a taser gun you must fire it in a way that both the prongs are attached to the target covering a decent area. However, that won't happen in my case unless he shot it at point blank range.

Even when shot by a taser gun, through sheer willpower one can rip off the prongs and render the gun useless.

Understanding these facts, he engaged in a hand to hand combat with me, in hopes of buying enough time for his two teammates who approached us at full speed.

Once they were here, he could just hold me off and they could fire two tasers at me, successfully taking me down.

A decent plan on paper.

I launched a swift jab in order to grasp his speed. He dodged it with perfect timing. I followed it up with a teep to his solar plexus using my right foot, but he blocked it using his hands.

I dropped my centre of gravity lower and rushed at him. In response, he tried to move out of the way but I caught his wrist. Pulling his hand towards me, I punched his chest like a battering ram.

The damage wasn't astounding but it was enough for the confusion I wanted to create.

I raised my right knee signalling another teep. Hastily, he responded by guarding his solar plexus, and that was when I turned my hips and redirected the kick to his face, thus executing the question mark kick.

It is a mainline feint, but if set up properly during a fight it can be lethal.

Once he received a blow to his head for a brief moment, his fist loosened up. I grabbed his ring finger and the realisation dawned upon him. It was already too late.

"N-No—"
*CRACK*

"Aarhg!"

When fighting, it is ill advised to ever open your mouth. Once your jaws are disconnected from each other, even a small hit to your lower jaw can dislocate it.

BAAM*

I hit his lower jaw, breaking it cleanly with one strike.

Out of the two bodyguards that were approaching me, one of them was here. He aimed the taser gun at me.

I used the man incapacitated in front of me as a human shield. Even with his disfigured face he struggled a little in my arms as I put him up in front of the taser gun aimed at me.

While the fight was short, it still took them time to reach us. What bothers me is that the third man seems to be missing. I scanned the area but he was nowhere to be found. It seems he got away while I was busy fighting his teammate.

I took out the taser gun from the suit of my human shield. Now the tables had flipped. Both of us had guns but I had a shield too. In this situation, it was bound to be my victory.

That was the moment I felt something cold on my neck. Instinctively, I moved from my position.

"Haha, your instincts exceed the rumours." The man standing in front of me said.

I threw a brief glance at the building behind me. At the rooftop, there was a sniper taking his aim at my back. This sniper was none other than the third person who went missing midway.

If I moved to face the sniper then the one standing in front of me would shoot, and if I didn't then the sniper would shoot me. But what was he going to shoot me with?

Using a bullet on me would be prohibited.

"Now take this!" The person in front of me yelled, he grabbed my attention and closed the distance with me.

"AAAAAAAAAAaaaaaa" A distinct cry was heard from the direction of the sniper.

Both of us stopped for a second, and looked back to see the sniper lying dead on the ground. Someone had thrown him off the building.

Taking advantage of the situation, I shot the taser gun on the confused man aiming the taser at me. He squirmed in pain and passed out soon.

I turned back to look at the person standing at the top of the building, where the sniper was previously positioned. In the dark, it was hard to make out if it was an adult or a student.

[A/n: Alright now's your chance to place your bet folks.]

The clouds revealed the moon once more and the moonlight disclosed the identity of the person standing on the rooftop.

"Kouenji..." Out of all people, for him to see all of this. Such a mess.

Adapting to the situation, the two bodyguards who were guarding that man left their positions and rushed towards me.

From their movements, I can say they are far stronger than the three that were eliminated.

"This is an emergency announcement. For tonight, there will be a curfew in the campus. Students aren't allowed to leave their rooms, and in case any of them are out they must return to their rooms immediately without fail." An announcement echoed from the two buildings as two cars stopped by.

A man in his forties walked out with a few of his men. They stood behind me as the man walked ahead.

The two bodyguards who were approaching me pointed the gun at the man who just walked out of his car while the other one rushed back to guard his employer.

"It is an unexpected surprise to see you here, Ayanokouji-sensei." The man said to him.

It seems they are acquainted. From the bodyguard I had just tasered earlier, I took out the taser gun from his hand.

If all these men team up on me then escape won't be an option anymore.

"Sakayanagi. It has been seven or eight years... you're the Chairman of this school now."

Sakayanagi?

If the Chairman himself is on his side then this all would be over for me.
"Yes, that was the time I had succeeded my father," he said with a grim expression.

"Now that you're here, things are easier, I am here to take back the boy."
"I am afraid that Kiyotaka-kun doesn't want the same."
Sakayanagi said without a hint of cowardice even though the bodyguards of that man had a pistol aimed at him.

The men Sakayanagi had brought with him were armed with guns as well, but I doubt if they would be able to defeat the two bodyguards that man had with him.

"..." The air around us got heavier as the Chairman didn't show any signs of complying.

"Why did you accept this kid into your school?" That man asked Sakayanagi.

"What do you mean, Sensei? Kiyotaka had passed the written exams and interview successfully, I had no reason to reject his admission—"
"Absolute lies." Sakayanagi was interrupted between his explanations.

"Do you think I don't know about your agents scouting the whole of Japan for students? You only take in students that are recommended by them. A sound method to pick up the cream of the crop, but you betrayed your own methods by accepting this child without any recommendation."

On hearing that, the Chairman's surprise was visible on his face.

"Sensei, even after retirement you are as ferocious as ever. It is true that Ayanokouji wasn't recommended to us, but I accepted his proposal because—"

Sakayanagi went on explaining the policies of his school and what it has to offer me. But amidst all this, I noticed that man making brief eye contacts with one of Sakayanagi's men.

"Highschool isn't considered necessary education and fees are covered by the government–"

Twice

"Our students' autonomy is our top priority–"

Thrice

"You have changed, Sakayanagi. Where did the old agreeable you go?"

The man standing behind Sakayanagi pulled a gun from his pocket.

I silently closed the distance between me and Sakayanagi.

I tasered Sakayanagi's bodyguard who I deduced to be a renegade of Sakayanagi's faction.

"What are you doing?!" On witnessing the sudden reaction, the guards rushed to Sakayanagi's side to protect him from me.

"He wasn't one of your men; he was on his side." I pointed at that man.

Sakayanagi looked at me with a stunned expression. It appears he trusted his men a lot.

"How do you know?" He asked me with a slightly deranged voice.

Without answering, I walked to the person I had just tasered, and took out the pistol from his jacket.

"He was going to hijack you as hostage or possibly shoot you."
I pointed the pistol at the two bodyguards that guarded that man.

Now the tables have turned. They weren't allowed to shoot me. However, I subscribed to no such policies.

I made sure not to point the gun at that man, or else the bodyguards would shoot me without hesitation. Even in a law abiding country, this man would execute me without thinking twice and get away with it.

It is a stalemate now. None of us were going to shoot. I wasn't sure if Sakayanagi would let me enter back to his school if he saw me murdering people on his land.

Sakayanagi, who had just tasted betrayal from one of his closest men, was in a state of confusion. Right now, if I think from the perspective of my opponent then the only way to break this stalemate would be...

"Sakayanagi..." That man said as he started walking towards us. His bodyguards walked with him.

"Your father was a wise person. He found this school and passed down his legacy to you. You had an intelligent wife too. In front of her, your existence was that of a fool. Yet, you loved her regardless and you thought she did too."

"Soon you realised that there wasn't a shred of love for you in her. She was just doing all this to climb up in society. She didn't care a thing about you or your child that she was carrying with her. Even after your protests, she never quit drinking during her pregnancy. Ultimately, the child was born as a cripple."
Sakayanagi's eyes widened on hearing that. He calculated in his head how the man standing in front of him obtained such information.

"You realised you were worthless when she left behind you and your child alone after a few years of giving birth. Till date, you two aren't divorced but what was the last time you saw her? Seven years ago? Eight years ago?"

The man kept on berating Sakayanagi further, but he isn't that foolish to take such a tactless approach.
At this point, it was getting unbearable for Sakayanagi. Even the men guarding Sakayanagi had lost their focus when faced by the words that man spoke.

"H-How do you know about this?"

"I know this because that is what the society wants you to believe, that is the illusion you were allowed to live in. That you are trash who never deserved a lady like your wife, she was far superior, and so and so."
Already deranged, Sakayanagi was confused even more after hearing what came next.

"Scratch all that and listen to me," he said and paused, emphasising on the word 'me'. The long pause he took was to indicate the importance of the matter he was going to address now.

"I expect you're well acquainted with the term Eugenics." In reply to his words, Sakayanagi nodded slightly.

"The movement to promote the genetically superior race to develop humanity to its perfect form, discarding any and every defect that the race carried."
Eugenics is a set of beliefs and practises that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population, historically, by excluding people and groups judged to be inferior or promoting those judged to be superior.

At one point in history, Eugenics was considered to be an academic practice in various parts of America. Its history went on as the movement gradually died out after the Nazis Eugenics.

Its downfall was basically caused by negative Eugenics, which was a practice to sterilise people who were considered defective in order to ensure the genetic progress of humanity.

"What about it? That is an ancient relic?" Sakayanagi's voice was filled with fear. Deep down, the reality was slowly dawning upon him but he didn't want to accept it.

"An ancient relic? It is still going strong, progressing even as we speak. The leaders of the eugenic movement never ceased their experiments. With their power in society, they would pick up the finest individuals humanity could offer to breed them further."
On hearing those words, Sakayanagi could no longer ignore the screams of his instinct.

"Your wife..." Just like the never stopping flow of time, the man kept on narrating mercilessly.

"She was the finest specimen Japan had to offer—"

"But she wasn't an easy one to obtain. At first, she had married you to seek protection from the people hunting her down. I have known a few people of that kind. They would give up any and everything at their disposal to protect themselves. As long as they have the means to protect themselves, they will do it."

"With your help, she was able to evade the agents who pursued her, ready to sacrifice you and your empire if needed to protect herself."
"But her plan went downhill when she actually fell in love with you. The shelter you provided her gave her the room to feel the emotions her heart was yearning for, to live the life she had been longing for—"
"Ever since she crossed her adolescent years, men had been sent by the association attempting to seduce her. Always on guard, her youth only had one happy memory. That was you, and now in order to protect what she loved, she was ready to sacrifice herself."

W-Wait no way..." Sakayanagi, gaping with an unfocused gaze, was having a hard time digesting the words he heard. A pain in his heart was relieved, leaving him with an unsteady gait and hands shivering ever so minutely. Nevertheless, another burden was introduced to it simultaneously.

"She understood as long as she would be with you, you will never find peace. It didn't only end at that. She had predicted that her own child would be targeted one day by the monsters who haunted her, thus she made sure that the child would be born as a cripple. Your daughter won't be targeted by the Eugenics association as long as she had a congenital defect."

Sakayanagi Arisu, the daughter of Chairman, had a congenital heart disease that inhibited the physical growth of her body. Her body won't be able to handle pregnancy, thus she wasn't a desired target for the Eugenics association. In this, her mother had assured her a peaceful life even if it meant to cripple her own daughter and sacrifice herself.
"What you inferred to be a curse to your daughter given by your wife, was actually the last blessing she could give you all. Once her daughter came of age, her time was up."

The cold hearted woman who had planned on using Sakayanagi and his position to protect herself ended up sacrificing herself for him. I can only wonder what she felt that led to her own sacrifice.
"Where is she now?!" Sakayanagi's cry beat at the night air.

The woman he loved with all his heart had never reciprocated his love. Even then with his broken heart, he persevered through life.

However, now that he has realised that what he saw was an illusion. That his wife had immense feelings for him, which never made it to him. The man standing in front of him broke that illusion. After the dawn of realisation, Sakayanagi was bound to act recklessly, latching on to the nearest person who could help him reach his goal.

And that would be...

"She longs to meet you as well. I myself have met her in the facility they have been keeping her."

"You have met her?!"

"Yes, I have other business to attend in the facility she is held captive in. She is in a pitiful state and her spirit is slowly breaking away, but it is your memories that keeps her together,"

The Eugenics Association and White Room might pursue ideals that are polar opposite to each other. However, they didn't hinder each other's progress. They were rivals in trade but not sworn enemies. The final showdown between them was still to come.
"Akiyo. . . Why. . . why is it that she needs to go through all this?" Sakayanagi was questioning himself. His body shifted, unsure of whether to loosen or collapse.

"You don't have even the slightest hint of her suffering. She had requested me personally not to let you find out any of this. To this day, she endures all of it silently for your family, but I can tell from looking at her. Deep down, she wants to be freed of the misery she is going through. It won't be late until she..."
Until she ends it herself.

Sakayanagi walked out of the circle of bodyguards. With a pained stare and curled shoulders, he surrendered himself in front of that man as his trembling lips choking, parted to push out the words. "Please! Sensei! I beg you to help me get to her!"

The corners of the man's mouth curved slightly upward in a despicable grin, as he looked down at Sakayanagi with a sense of victory.

This day has been full of unexpected developments.

The devil standing in front of Sakayanagi extended his arm.

"Help me get this brat out of here, and I will use everything at my disposal to snatch your wife out the hands of those monsters."

Chapter- 8 (Tug of war)

Chapter- 8 (tug of war)

"Sensei..." Sakayanagi reached out to the man standing in front of him.

"Reconsider your actions, Sakayanagi." I dropped the honorifics and interrupted him before he could take his hand.

"Don't interrupt when adults are speaking." The man warned me.

His sharp gaze was meant to make me fearful, but wavering at this point would cost me a lot.

"The man standing in front of you — he lacks the means to rescue your wife..."

If he did, he would've obtained her already. Or perhaps he already has her but he is making up all of this.

"What..." Sakayanagi doubted my words.

"His only hope to beat the Eugenics Movement is me — his only success."
"Ignorant child, since the facility has reopened there has been numerous successes."

"If that was true, you won't be pulling off these stunts just to retrieve me." I pointed around to his dead and deformed bodyguards.

"If the public found out, then your dreams of making a comeback would go down the drain." I continued.

"The talent you show is extraordinary. Such loss would be detrimental." He said as a matter of fact.

"If I am expelled from this academy, then I won't be providing any help in rescuing your wife. Instead, I might even sabotage the mission." I warned Sakayanagi but I didn't expect it to work. What I was trying to do here was something different.

"You..."
"Don't listen to him, Sakayanagi. He is my property; he has no right to refuse me. Once he is back to White Room, he will have no choice but to follow the path I chose for him." The man highlighted his control over my actions, which was absolutely true. His words have always been absolute when it came to that place.

On hearing this, Sakayanagi felt a little conflicted. He was relieved that his cause wasn't threatened, but, deep down, he didn't agree to what that man said.

"... Yes, you are right. Once I am back to that place, I will have no choice but to keep following the silhouette I see in front of me. My autonomy is a dream that I will never achieve it seems." I admitted.

Student's autonomy was paramount in this school. And this man was a direct threat to the ideals Sakayanagi family had been carrying.

On hearing my words, the man smiled a little, but this was all to lead to another event.

"Perhaps to escape this all, I will just end this suffering..." I said.

Sakayanagi, who once again looked at me as if I was a helpless child, gasped at my sudden confession.

"What sort of nonsense are you speaking? You out of all people should know that you aren't capable of doing that. No matter what happens, the only direction you can move is forward."

"You will sacrifice whatever it takes to keep yourself safe. Self-harm is something you can't even dream of."

"..." Sakayanagi gazed at the monster standing beside him.

"...You're right about that as well," I replied to that man.

Like a small child making false arguments and getting caught, I appeared harmless in front of Sakayanagi, appearing to be on the mercy of the monster standing among us.

"Wasn't your wife's mindset similar to mine before she met you? I wonder what she felt that led her down the path of self-sacrifice. Was it love? How would it feel? I can't help but think about that feeling."

Sakayanagi stayed silent, recollecting his thoughts.

"Don't listen to the rubbish he speaks. In order to gain something, you must sacrifice something. This has gone long enough." He tried interrupting but I didn't stop.

"Can you live happily in a future you forged by tarnishing a child's life, a child the same age as your own daughter?"

A small seed of internal conflict had germinated within Sakayanagi, however, it was far too small to outweigh the words of that man.

I am not foolish enough to ask help from someone by appealing to their mercy or gratitude. Appealing to one's self interest is always a surefire method to win.

"That leads me to the question: what is the congenital heart disease that your daughter has? Is it Atrial Septal Defect? Or Ventricular Septal Defect?"

Hearing the story of his alcoholic wife, it was easy to conclude that the disease Sakayanagi Arisu had was due to Fetal Alcoholic Syndrome.

While the possibility of other diseases exists, it would be convenient for me if it turns out it is ASD or VSD, since that way I won't have to lie.

"...It is Atrial Septal Defect." After a long silence, Sakayanagi spoke.

"The growth of her body is stunted. The doctors won't operate the hole in her heart until and unless she qualifies the minimum physical standards to undergo the open heart surgery. Am I wrong?"
When faced with my words, Sakayanagi had no choice but to agree.

The life of such patients is a complicated one. In order to perform the open heart surgery, the patient needs to be in a healthy state. If not, then as the age passes by, the hole in their heart will grow into a fatal disease and end the patient's life.

"You will have no choice but to stand back and look at your daughter as she dies. If you dare attempt a surgery, then that would lead to inevitable death as well. In other words, you know your daughter doesn't have a long life waiting for her."
This was another shot at Sakayanagi's heart, breath hitching when he tipped his head.

"... I don't know why you are saying all of this right now, but it isn't something I would talk to you about."
"That would be a foolish move. Your daughter isn't a lost cause that the medical science of today announces her to be."
"Huh?"

"No matter what path you take, you don't have a future in which your daughter will smile back at you. That is what you might believe, however, let me tell you that isn't necessarily that hopeless case."

On hearing my words, Sakayanagi went silent. He wasn't sure if it was a child making false arguments or someone who could give him a genuine ray of hope.

This was a battle Sakayanagi had already resigned from. His hopes were already non-existent as he had accepted the truth. But now, I was digging out those hopes from their graves.
"In the White Room, as my final Cardiothoracic surgery practical exam, I had joined a team of top surgeons in order to progress the research of this disease. The head of that team was none other than Kurihara Komugi, who went by the alias of Mimuro Midori in the White Room."

On hearing that, Sakayangi was shocked as his posture turned stiff as a corpse. Still a little unsure, he prompted me to continue.

"The research we were involved in had heavy casualties. Countless test subjects lost their lives as we performed surgeries on humans with physical defects or an underdeveloped body. It was too much for Kurihara to bear, and thus once the research date ended she retired."
If Sakayanagi had accessed the top class surgeons for his daughter's treatment, there was no way he wouldn't know the name of Kurihara Komugi.

"If I am not wrong, then she retired four years ago in the month of March, since that was the time our research had ended. The psychological damage she took during that project made her unable to do anymore surgeries."

To put it simply, her hands started shaking after watching one after another patient die by her hands. And unstable hands aren't acceptable as a surgeon.

"You know that... that means..." Sakayanagi said, his words turned inarticulate and his belief in my words started rising.
"Yes. Halfway through the project, she stepped down as the leader and I was the leader of that project."
Stunned by the sudden development, Sakayanagi thought twice about what I had said.

"By the end of the project, I had done countless surgeries on people with not much different stature compared to that of your daughter."
"W-What was the end result?" He asked impatiently. His body, subconsciously, leaned in for the answer.

The man standing beside him understood what I was trying to do here, but he couldn't deny a word of what I said because it was the truth. And even if it had been a lie, he didn't understand the details of all the tests I went through.

"In the end, I could perform a surgery with a success rate of ninety percent. Only in cases of an existing neurological defect would it go downhill."
I lied to Sakayanagi. Right now, what matters is for me to get out of that situation.

"If that is the case, then he will treat your daughter under my command as well." The man tried snatching away my victory.

"That won't happen. The solution to your problem is something only I have. If I decide against it, then I can just let the surgery fail and blame it on my inability."
This was a threat no one could eliminate. It was something that one couldn't blame me for.

"On top of that, this man has been training me for all these years so that one day I can surpass him. If you understand that is the natural course of action, then you should also get the fact that I can rescue your wife myself as well."
Sakayanagi was now unsure of which path to choose. My deal outweighed the one pitched by that man. But the credibility of my words was lagging behind his.

Both of us offered him a solution to the predicament he had written off to be a loss for him. We gave him a hope of victory.

"The child isn't capable of whatever he says. Don't believe him."
"You have your choice. Will you see a future with your daughter?"
Two monsters played with Sakayanagi's emotions, his motivations, his despair, his happiness. Both of us used anything at our disposal to snatch him away from the other party.

The Chairman grabbed his head trying to make a sound decision while the other men stood there waiting for his word. Soon his breaking point will be here.

Taking advantage of a small pause, I looked back at the school building where Kouenji wasn't sitting anymore. He isn't the type to leave these things at a time like this.

"Will you choose the past or the future? Your daughter can still be saved, if you keep me in your school, that is. You can save the lives of two children and your wife."

"Sakayanagi, this has been drawn out long enough. You expel this child right now." Watching the tides turning against him, the man grew impatient.

But Sakayanagi was unable to produce an output.

"Your beloved wife doesn't have much time left, if you don't comply here then there is a good chance you won't even see her dead body."

"Even if her fertile years are over they can't discard a valuable specimen that your wife is."
I reassured him, deep down knowing that might not be the case.

"In hindsight, within a year or two your daughter will start suffering heart palpitations or skipping beats. Your wife might not be here, but your daughter is all you had from the beginning to the end. It would be such a tragedy to watch her die while holding your hands."

I created an image of his daughter at her deathbed, as the man standing in front of me tried to create the image of his beloved wife giving up on life.

"Have faith in yourself. Collect yourself and decide," I said, suddenly dropping the force from my side.

"Whatever it will be I will accept it, of course with the conditions I mentioned. Whatever it will be, it will be your decision. I don't plan on influencing you any further."

My words were to heal Sakayanagi, to let him feel back in control of his life. This was something that man wasn't capable of doing — providing support to the ignorant who stood in our way — bending a little to let them feel the importance of their existence. Because at the end of the day, for Sakayanagi, it wasn't about me at all.

The Chairman looked at me, like a child unsure of which road to walk on. Uncertain which way would lead to home, he was afraid of moving from the spot he was in. But life must go on.

I nodded at him once, and waited for his decision patiently. The reverse psychology of not manipulating a person who knows that he is being manipulated leads to a clearer decision.

From the start, Sakayanagi was on my side. All I had to do was to undo the spell that man had cast on him.

Slowly, Sakayanagi stood back up. The sun wasn't up, yet the visibility was slowly increasing as faint sunlight killed away the darkness of the eternal night.

"Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, you do understand that sneaking out of the building at night is punishable by expulsion?"
Huh?

"..."
"Go back in. I will overlook this once, but next time I won't be able to protect you."
I faintly felt relief. The man standing beside us clenched his fist in irritation.

"Sensei, I want to—"
"Words aren't needed anymore. You've chosen your side."
"But—"
"Your wife is already dead." Cutting Sakayanagi's heart apart, the man walked back. The two bodyguards moved their teammates to the car.

The chairman blankly stared at the rising sun. Perhaps it was the most tragic sunrise Sakayanagi will ever see in his life.

I turned back and started walking.

"Ayanokouji-kun..." I turned back on hearing my name.

"Do you think my wife is still alive?" He asked me, his dull, red eyes had in them hints of tears. He asked that question even as his chin quivered. He wasn't sure of what to believe and what not to at this point

"The probability of that is very low, but if she is as talented as I have heard then it might be possible that she found a way to survive."

"I see." Accepting the truth, he wiped off his tears.

"I hope you learn a lot here, Ayanokouji-kun."
"I hope the same."

Chapter - 9 (White Room report)

Chapter- 9 (White Room report)

My footsteps echoed as I made my way through the white corridors, approaching a white gate. Seldom in my life have I cooperated with others; today is one of those days.

The automatic gates opened up without making a sound. A team of medical scholars awaited me in that room. To the world, they were better known by the term 'doctor', but here it wasn't a hospital.

"This will be your final practical exam for cardiothoracic surgery. You will join this team as an assistant of the head leading them," the instructor said.

"The team will be performing open heart surgeries for the coming sixty days. As you know already, the success rate of open heart surgery on physically weaker or patients with other defects is drastically low. The goal here is to guarantee a hundred percent success rate for those kinds of surgeries."

An impossible goal to common sense. However, in the face of the objective this facility plans to achieve, this goal would still look achievable.

"What will be the disease that we will be treating?" I asked once he was done.

"It will be majorly atrial septal defect and ventricular septal defect. In layman terms, you will be treating hole-in-heart."

"How many test subjects do I have access to?"
"At the moment, we have around a hundred of them, their age ranging from ten months to twenty years. You will be provided new subjects when the existing ones are confirmed to be deceased"
"What is the mode value of their age?"

"Twelve years."
I see, same age as mine.

"Very well."
The instructor who was blocking my vision moved out of my way. Nine individuals stood there wearing white coats and white pants.

"Nice to meet you, I am Mimuro Midori." I shook hands with her.

"I will be leading our team for the coming days. I am not allowed to ask your details so we will just address you as assistant for now."
The lady was in her mid thirties. Compared to the other men standing in the room, she was relatively younger. I can sense the envy in their eyes.

Done with the pleasantries, we moved to the operating theatre.

The body needs a certain level of body fat to undergo puberty. If you lack that, then your puberty will be delayed naturally. Many Olympic athletes who prepare from a young age suffer delayed puberty due to low fat percentage.

In order to avoid that, our physical training has been dialed down in terms of intensity and total time. Thus, ensuring us to gain the amount of fat needed. This test is a time consuming process. It is the time saved from that area that will be utilized here by me.

My every move was being inspected by the instructor who was marking me. This test isn't about achieving the goal we set out for, but the marks depend on the skills I display and the progress I make to medical science within the coming sixty days.

"Our first patient was here," Midori announced.

It was a boy. The nurse standing beside me received the details about the boy. Once she was done reading, she passed it onto others.

Without wasting any time the anesthesiologists started questioning the boy about his medical history. If he has smoked? Or used any drugs?
Once the information was extracted the anesthesia was prepared for him. Soon Midori took the lead, and started by performing a chest incision to access the heart.

I prepared the heart lung bypass machine as she prepared the cardioplegia to stop the subject's heart.

Once that was done, the surgery began. The boy was a feeble one. He was from a rural area of Zimbabwe. The nutrition he received there would never nourish him to the point where he can undergo an open heart surgery safely.

The woman standing in front of me had a crystal clear focus. There was no room for error in her work. For a brief moment, I looked at her eyes above the mask. A million thoughts were going through her head. The scream in her head was clearly audible through her eyes.

Unlike most of the surgeons I had seen she was actually nervous yet the nervousness didn't reach her hands. All the pressure on her produced perfection.

"The risk of Ischemic Heart damage is increasing exponentially. Time is running out, mam."

She just needed a little bit more time to patch the hole in the boy's heart. But it was too late now.

"Prepare the AED, we will have to jumpstart his heart sooner than I had expected." She commanded me.

Swiftly, I prepared the machine but everyone in the room knew the damage had occurred already.

Before she could put the machine to use, heart failure had occurred already. I nodded at the instructor who called the cleaning team to replace the corpse.

Sigh*
Midori took a deep breath, rearranging herself. She was clearly pushing her limits as the speed and precision I had just witnessed were exceeding that of any surgeon I had seen in action.

But the fatigue wasn't only physical, it was emotional as well. Even though she had agreed to this project herself, even though she was expecting failures, that was something she can only say to convince herself.

Deep down, she was strongly hoping for the child to survive, for her to meet success. According to the previous records I have received about her, she is a top class surgeon with a nearly perfect success rate.

"I will be performing the next surgery, you should take a little rest," I stated boldly.

"Huh? Don't worry about me. That was a short surgery compared to the hours of surgery I have done in past."
True. However, unlike those, this surgery hit you with failure.

"There are going to be a lot of surgeries in the coming days. It will be better if we alternate and preserve our stamina for better performance."
After a moment of silence she answered.

"Very well, I will be helping you with it."
I nodded and left the room. It was still a few minutes before we were ready for the surgery. The instructor walked out with me as well. Once we were a little far from the room, I turned back to face him.

"If possible I would like to meet today's test subjects before the next surgery."
He narrowed his eyes on my request, but responded instantaneously.

"Follow me."
—--

After a few minutes, my turn came as the surgeon as Midori stood there to assist me.

I began the surgery. Without much of the thought, I teared through the chest. The real timer started ticking after the heart was stopped, so we connected the bypass machine.

My accuracy was higher than Midori, but she beat me at speed. Right now, if I rush things then I can risk the patient's death on the spot. If that happens, the team won't allow me another surgery alongside them.

But I risked inaccuracy. They had just witnessed failure from expiration of time. Right now, minor inaccuracies might be needed to determine the time limit we have.

In the end, my surgery was a failure due to a small cut which led to excessive bleeding. During the surgery, by using Heparin blood is thinned, so even a minor injury could cause bleeding.

I signaled the instructor to remove the deceased from the room.

"That was a wild surgery, I haven't seen someone operating so fast at such a young age." Midori, who had recovered a little, commended me.

"I have a feeling if we train you enough you can beat the odds here."
She had a deep understanding of the situation. On top of that, she had also met failure in her first surgery. Thus she didn't go on nitpicking my work.

The days went by and everyday a handful of subjects died in the operating theatre. I observed Midori's work in the finest detail possible and my speed grew exponentially.

Soon enough she acknowledged me to be equal to her, but I knew that she was still better than me when we compared the product of efficiency and speed.

The problem here was her affection for the subjects. She wasn't able to deal with so many failures. The reason our speeds were nearing each other wasn't only because of my increase in speed, but because witnessing so many failures was fogging her head and clouding her decision. Ultimately, making her slower.

Doctors are called hypocrites by the society as they are blamed to be more focused on their promotion and thinning the wallet of their patient, rather than the well being of the patient.

However, when it comes to surgeons, that is something that helps them to remain sane. If they let the thought of failure cloud their judgement then it will soon be over for them and the patient. Thus, for the greater good, they have to detach themselves emotionally from the patient.

The only way for doctors like Midori to exist is by feeding your psyche on success. The results convince you that no matter how much confusion or stress there is at the moment, at the end you would emerge victorious.

However, here the opposite was happening. One after another failure ate away Midori's self esteem. Thus, I can conclude she wasn't fit to lead this project.

It was around the sixteenth day when this little girl entered the theatre room. She was around my age, unlike other subjects she was an amiable one.

Seemingly oblivious to her incoming death, she happily answered the questions of the anesthesiologist.

"Ah, by the way sensei. Which one of you is Midori-san?" The little girl asked, looking around in the room.

Midori, who was a little confused, raised her hand.

"That would be ..."

"Yesterday, I met a boy. He was around my age, you know he told me to look for you. He said that Midori-san will treat me to ramen when I meet her."
"O-Oh, do you like ramen?"

"Yes!"

Midori briefly glanced at me from the corner of her eyes, but I didn't show any reaction to it.

Soon the surgery began. Under the burden of the child's hope, Midori worked with otherworldly speed and efficiency. I monitored the stats of the subject myself to make sure no disaster occured.

"I am closing the incision, prepare the AED," she said in a calm voice.

Thus we managed to see the first subject open its eyes after the surgery. The other members of the team took care of the follow up procedures.

Sitting beside me, Midori removed her gloves.

"You were the one who told her about me?" She asked.

I nodded back in response. She stayed silent, not sure how to react.

"After a few days, arrange some ramen for her. That guy listens to you more than me." She said looking at the instructor.

Later that night, I went ahead to visit the subject who was successfully operated on. Her stats didn't show any dangerous signs, except her low cardiac output. Midori was already sitting there, interacting with her patient.

"Can you tell me your name?"
"My name..."
The subject had suffered some neurological damage it seems. Thinking is hard for her.

"Yes, your name."
"I... I want to eat ramen... Midori-san will treat me to ramen.. ."

Midori held the right hand of the girl gently.

"Yes, I will treat you to it soon."
On hearing her words, the girl smiled a little. A small drop of tear rolled down her eyes.

"I am glad to be alive-"

The girl took an abrupt pause. I looked at the monitor, and her cardiac output had fallen further. Her heart won't be able to pump the blood, and ultimately there was going to be a multiple organ failure.

"Kkkk.." The girl squirmed. It was starting from the respiratory failure.

"Assistant, assemble the medical team right now!" Midori yelled, but I didn't move a muscle.

Until I contacted the instructor, no one was coming to save her. This wasn't an hospital. A failed test subject was nothing but a hindrance to my progress.

"What are you doing?!?!" She screamed.

"It is time you put her out of her misery," I said calmly.

"Don't act stupid. She can still be saved if we invest time!"
Ignoring her words, I shut off the life support connected to her.

"Mido... Ha... haaa!!!" With one last second of writhing, the subject's movements froze, still as an unmoving plateau.

Midori's hand was on my collar and she lifted me up, her pupils shaking from rage.

The instructor hearing her screams ran into the room. I signaled him to keep his distance.

She was breathing heavily, unable to make out words. I looked into her eyes, and soon despair started consuming the anger.

"Why did you do that?! We could still have saved her!"

I gripped her wrist in my arm and freed myself.

"Her body wasn't ready to undergo a surgery, at least not before seventy two hours."
"That doesn't mean we shouldn't try!"
"Surgery to recover MOF (multiple organ failure) isn't our objective. We are here to find a way to carry out successful operation for ASD and VSD on weaker subjects."

"But the life of the patient comes first!"
"That wasn't a patient that was a test subject.
"What the... That isn't how it works" She said in disbelief.

"This isn't a hospital."
"That isn't how doctors think..."
"We aren't doctors here; we are medical scholars. Progress of our project takes priority over the life of test subject."
"You... what are you..." It dawned upon Midori how different our goals were. They weren't polar opposite, but for Midori saving her patient took priority.

"We have more test subjects, around two hundred of them now. All of them are going to die if our project isn't successful. The more time we lose, the more casualties there will be. The most we can make out of her death is to learn what she had to offer to us and apply it on the next subject." Hearing my words put Midori into a moral dilemma.

She sat down on the floor, hugging her knees. Thinking about what I had just said.

I didn't want to end the subject without attempting another surgery, but that would take more time and the next subject wouldn't be supplied to me until the existing one was deceased.

The progress we had made in the past few days was something the world didn't make in a decade. It is natural that in order to accelerate the progress we will have to burn a lot of sacrifices as fuel.

It will be considered a 'genius' accomplishment if we achieve our goal, but it would be impossible to hide the 'madness' lurking behind the scenes.

I sat down on the floor in front of Midori and waited for the reality to dawn upon her. This much would be enough to make her understand the situation.

"The burden is far too heavy for you to bear. Pass it on to me, and work for me to achieve what you set out for." I extended my hand.

Something that man lacked, to extend a hand before the breaking point. He would crush everyone mercilessly in the process; he would end up demolishing tools that could prove to be useful as well.

Silently, Midori took my hand, like a scared child.

—--

The next day, I replaced Midori as the team leader. Our research went on. Day after day we made progress but not enough to gain even one survivor. All of those who were brought to us were physically weak or handicapped. Their body is so fragile that it would break even at the slightest mistake.

My skills kept improving and Midori assisted me to the best of her abilities. She wasn't cheerful anymore but her focus had certainly sharpened.

The instructor had stopped marking me, indicating that I had already passed the test before the time limit. However, they didn't call off the project for some reason.

Mercilessly, the time kept flowing and the day when it all was going to end came. Our progress was humongous, but it still wasn't enough to guarantee the subjects a life. Perhaps if I had a little more time I could've made it.

But now that I have passed the test, I will leave that job to the rest of humanity. Sooner or later, they will make enough progress to make the impossible possible.

I wonder if the data we obtained and our papers will ever come to light, but now there was no point wondering about it.

—--

Chapter- 10

Chapter-10 (Hirata's POV)

It was still dark when I woke up. The curfew announced last night appeared to be out of order; an odd time to impose the restriction.

It's half past four already, any later than this would result in a half-cooked breakfast. I propped myself on my bed and looked around. Others were sound asleep; after all, no one was habituated to waking up this early in the morning.

Wondering if we were still restricted to our rooms I walked out, no one seemed to be there to monitor the curfew. However, before walking out into the ground I decided to find an official to confirm the situation.

As I roamed in the hallways I saw a few men stationed over the main gate. They were heavily armed for someone guarding a school gate.

I turned the other way and headed towards the main ground. One of our instructors was sweeping the place.

"Good morning, sir."
"Good morning. I am not sure if you should be out here right now."
"But, last night we were instructed to cook our own breakfast. If I delay my work any further it would cause our group problems."
"Yes, I understand that but I am not sure if the curfew has ended yet."
I see, so not even the instructor was informed about the curfew.

"So what should I expect in that case?" I asked.
"I am assuming the authorities will provide you all breakfast for today..." It was hard not to notice the uncertainty in his voice.

"Or maybe you can start gathering the wood and stuff, just don't go towards the main gate. And make sure not to wake up anyone else."

"...Alright.."

I made my way back to the room, glancing over the guards at the main gate briefly. Whatever is on the other side of the gate is the reason behind this curfew.

The door to my room opened, making a sharp creaking noise. The age of the building spoke for itself. On entering I found Akito awake.

I turned on the light, slowly everyone from our group started waking up, trying to rub the sleepiness out of their eyes.

"We will start preparing breakfast now," I announced.

Akito woke up Sudou and other Class A students, while students of Class C were still asleep. I didn't pay much attention to them. Most of the group was ready to go, so we made our way to the outdoor cookhouse near the school building.

Soon we organised ourselves and started working on our respective chores. I chopped the vegetables while Akito made omelettes. There were a few other students who were skilled in cooking, thus, our work didn't burden us.

"Hey, Hirata. Those guys are sleeping on their asses while we do all the work here!" Sudou growled at me.

He had a point, I looked at Akito; he nodded at me.

"Very well, come with me." I ordered him.

I did plan to confront those guys soon for information but this might be a good time.

"Guys, can you please handle the eggs for a while? I will be back in a few minutes." Akito said and left.

With the same creaking sound I opened the door. Amidst the silence of morning one can hear the clock ticking. The three of us stayed silent, so I approached Ishizaki and tried to wake him up, but to no avail.

"Let me sweep..." He said in a dreamy voice.

Unconsciously, my face made a disgusted expression. I harden my mind. I grabbed the collar of his jersey and dragged him down to the floor.

THUD

"Who the fuck?!" Ishizaki snapped out of sleep, yelling at the top of his lungs.

He frantically swung his fist on the floor in confusion.

"You!-" Before he could get up, I pinned him down with my elbow on his throat.

He looked at me, looked with an expression making clear it was hard for him to breathe. Those eyes I saw didn't have a hint of drowsiness left in them.

"Uh, hey is it okay to do that?" Sudou asked Akito.

"Yeah, no witnesses, probably alright."

There was no worries seeing the reflection of his eyes. The lid becomes loose. Not one shrapnel of suffering.

Ishiaki struggled vigorously under me. Given his size, it would be hard to keep him in control without beating him up. But, I had other means.

I took out my knife and pointed at his face. It felt cold against my skin like fragments of glaciers held tight.

"Stop moving." I commanded. Echoes of blades scraping against a tumbler runs in the pores of my skin.

Terrified by the sight of it Ishizaki stopped moving. It was an elementary deduction to understand that I won't use the knife on him; reason being it would leave evidence of my assault. However, the confusion of being dragged to the floor from deep sleep is showing its effects.

Uncertain if what he was seeing was a nightmare or reality Ishizaki tried to breath frantically.

Not to suffer, not to lose; unbidden, the words momentarily floats before sinking back.

"Go and make breakfast." I said, releasing his throat. Liberated and released—yet there's more of that. It's not primeval.

"Don't you think you will get away with this!" Hearing Ishizaki's scream, other boys from Class C woke up.

Once Ishizaki swung his fist, I backed off. As if understanding I had tagged, Akito charged at Ishizaki.

"Hold him down." I said to Sudou who was standing beside me.

"Huh? Alright, do I beat him?" He asked with a hint of hesitation.

During the first sem he had been accused of beating up Ishizaki and the other boys present in this room. But, it all had ended since we were able to obtain a clear recording of Ishizaki mentioning Ryuuen's name in the scheme.

Once the group has withdrawn the complaint of assault, they have already lost the faith of the student council. If they try filing the same complaint on Sudou again, then naturally they will be the one suspected, not us. On top of that, my presence will guarantee our safety in all this.

Thus even if we are actually assaulting them, as long as no witness exists—they are powerless. How sickening.

"Don't maul him, just pacify him." I made sure to order Sudou correctly.

"Oi, oi, what are you guys doing?!" Komiya hopped down from his bunker bed.

"Want to join him?" I asked.

For a moment he stopped in his tracks. Thinking of my words as an empty threat he charged at me.

"Uraaaah!"

I took out my knife again. On the sight of it Komiya flinched for a second. While I had his attention on the knife I rammed my other fist into his solar plexus.

I straightened my body with my mind frozen, unfeeling. The loose lid is slapped by the back hand of scathing fury.

"Aa-" Voice didn't escape his mouth, the voice was lost as the diaphragm experiences a concussion which makes it hard to breath or speak.

Holding his stomach he dropped down on his knees. I looked at the other two guys from Class C. The cards fall thudding in the box. It's right.

"You want to join them?" I asked them.

Not sure what to answer, both of them didn't move. I turned back to Ishizaki who was being held by Sudou and Akito.

Seemingly, he had been pacified by both of them.

"Hirata, what do you want?"

"I will be asking questions."

At first I had planned to simply ask him to cook breakfast, but this might be my chance to interrogate him.

"Who was the traitor from our class that helped Ryuuen?"
"I don't know who the hell you're talking about. Are you out of your mind?-"

SMACK

"Oww!"

"I will be asking questions." I whisper, making him zipped, shut.

Knock

"Come back and do your work we are done with ours." A boy on the other side of the door said.

"I will have to continue this other time."

Dread, guilt, grit—such sentiments spilled out evaporates. I shut the lid tight. There's nothing.

—--

Ichinose's POV
It was a rare sight to see Sakayanagi's troubled expression, but, last night, once the curfew was announced, she walked out of the room even though we were asked not to do exactly that.

None of us dared to follow her. Kamuro being asleep didn't have the chance to. After some time, Sakayanagi returned. Dissatisfaction was apparent on her face with a hint of anxiety. That was a new face of the usually calm and collected Sakayanagi. I had a feeling deep down that I won't be seeing her like this often.

Not sure if I should ask anything to her or not, all of us silently slept.

"Honami-chan! You were right, the fried rice is amazing." Mei-chan snapped me out of my thoughts.

The cafeteria was colossal. It had the capacity to hold all the students from every school year. My eyes roved around, searching for Ayanokouji. Now was the only time we were allowed to make contact with boys.

However, there was this another problem.

Matsushita placed her plate on the table. It was filled with a lot Salmon marinated in miso soup. I can understand the attraction to its rich taste, however, she didn't seem excited for her meal.

"You were right, they have been eyeing on me constantly." She whispered as she sat down.

Since we entered the cafeteria I felt eyes spying on me. Soon enough Matsushita shared the same thought with me.

She wore a disgusted expression but now that I look around, all of us are being watched, and they aren't even trying to hide it.

The one watching me was none other than Ryuuen. I looked at him eye to eye; his malicious grin didn't attempt to cover up his joy, seeing the uncomfortable expression of the students of our Class.

I looked at Horikita who gave me a slight nod, she was sitting on the same table as Kushida; making sure that she wasn't doing anything to sabotage us while also getting the best out of her for the class.

Seemingly both of them had arrived at the same conclusion I have. At first sight it would appear that the Class C students were roaming aimlessly around the cafeteria, truth being far from that.

Each individual was monitoring some other individual from our class. As time passed more and more students from our class realized what was going on and the news circulated.

Should I make contact with Ayanokouji-kun?

The question bugged me. Since the island exam to the sports festival Ayanokouji had been at the center of major events. If I rush to his help instinctively then his identity would get revealed. Talking to him even after some time would raise suspicion towards him.

"I am going to talk to Horikita-san about Class C," I said.

"Awlright, take care Honami-chwan," Mei-chan said with a mouthful of food.

People are forced to accept their faults, even if they are not yet ready to do so. However, we should leave that role to people who aren't emotionally close to the person. If the role is played by someone close to that person then inevitably the person will distance themselves emotionally. Children deep down hate parents who constantly point out faults in them. Everyone has a different rate of absorbing criticism; very few people have the patience to hear their shortcomings.

It is said you should avoid conflicts with people you want close to yourself, even if it is for their growth. You either lose or win. In case you lose then you're influenced by their beliefs further; even if you win they will just distance themselves to lay low and lick their wounds, plotting revenge on you.

The relation between me and Kushida Kikyou was on that very boat: same was applied to her relation with Horikita. As long as she is our enemy we will be facing internal conflict in our class. On the other hand, making a friend out of her is even harder than pacifying her.

Getting rid of my empty plate, I placed my hands under the mouth of the water tap. I glanced over to Ryuuen briefly. For a brief moment I caught him looking at someone else. Just before I could trace out his line of sight he turned his head, suddenly looking right at me, as if sensing my gaze on him.

Ignoring him I moved on towards Horikita.

"Good morning,"

"Good morning, Ichinose-san."

As I sat down on the chair beside Kushida, Ibuki also took a seat near us, clearly eavesdropping on our conversation. I wanted to discuss further course of action about Ayanokouji with Horikita once we were alone. However, it doesn't seem that time will come in the cafeteria.

"A lot of girls came to complain about their behaviour," Horikita stated.

"I see."
"Even if I leave you two, Ryuuen will keep on haunting you guys. He will keep searching for the one hiding in your shadows," Kushida said, stressing the last part intentionally.

The moment she finished talking she turned her head towards Ibuki, who was caught off guard and flinched for a second. As if certain of something, Kushida wore a thin smile as she turned back to us.

"I fully understand that, however, that shouldn't break the unity of our class anymore." Horikita, who didn't have much faith in unity a little time ago, treated it as the new shield for the class.

Right now the only reason Kushida is cooperating with us is in hopes of finding the one who is leading us, the person who is her true enemy. But getting past me won't be easy for her, now that she has lost the support of Ryuuen Kakeru.

Even when the partnership between both of them had broken off, they are still tracking down their enemy vigilantly; in their own way.

RINGG

The bell concluded the end of our lunch break. Once we were out of the cafeteria everything turned back to normal. I didn't feel anyone spying on me anymore, as if the time for that had passed. The students of Class C were back to blending with other classes as if nothing ever happened.

"There is more going on in this test than what meets the eyes." Horikita said.

Chapter-11 (Cards)

Chapter- 11 (Cards) (Ayanokouji's POV)

It was an hour before lights out. Chattering voices filled our room. I sat in a group discussion between students of different classes with nothing much to contribute; I sat in silence listening to their views.

Students from Class A and Class B were there with us. Yuukimura had decent debate skills but that didn't equal social skills; hence, the one helping us fit into this discussion was Makida.

A good talent for breaking ice, small talk, self introduction and so on... he wasn't smart, yet he had a comfortable personality.

Out of my line of sight Koenji was still doing pushups. He had been exerting himself continuously. I picked up my phone to check on him. He showed no signs of fatigue.

On the bunker bed above Ryuuen, sat Kaneda looking at some sort of paper. I assume it is the breakfast menu which we will soon have to prepare. Below him, Ryuuen laid back on his bed with his hands interlocked behind his head, resting with his eyes closed.

Soon when the group was formed, through his intimidation, he established peace. Even though we didn't want to cozy up to other classes, when faced with a common enemy like him, the students opposing him naturally feel a little close to each other.

This exam invited an inevitable collision, even though planned I felt I have made a fatal error. After meeting that man, I can safely conclude that the manipulation Chabashira built was based on a lie.

Thinking about how she had an insight of my situation, I can only fathom a few possibilities. Chairman Sakayanagi might have a few answers for me. I wanted to ask him back then but he was in no state of answering such questions.

Had I known that Chabashira was bluffing, I would've avoided my display of abilities at any cost. What was lost now was the prospect of a normal school life, the one I had envisioned when boarding the bus to ANHS.

It's too late to ponder on the past now. The way the current situation is progressing, it won't be surprising for someone to just knock on the door and tell Ryuuen: Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is the one you're searching for.

But I am prepared for it anywa-

Knock Knock

"..."

"Who is it? At a time like this." Doesn't seem like anyone knows and so everyone curiously looked at the door.

Yuukimura got up and started walking while asking who's knocking. The person on the other side truly is someone unexpected.

"Are you guys still up?" asked Nagumo.

"No." Ryuuen announced while still lying on his bed.

"Yes, yes. Can we help you with something?" Yuukimura, recovering from the shock, covered up swiftly.

"I came to check on you guys since we're in the same group. Can I come in?"

"Yes, please."

Nagumo was accompanied by Vice President Kiriyama as well as two 3rd year students. One of them is a student from Class B named Tsunoda and the other, Ishikura, is also from Class B.

Before this test, the elder Horikita had mentioned Kiriyama as an ally. Assuming he has informed Kiriyama about me, I must tread carefully right now.

Upon entering the room, Nagumo surveyed his surroundings. The two students from third years looked at me for a moment then averted their gaze. Kiriyama did his best to avoid any eye contact, while Nagumo didn't seem much interested in any first year at the moment.

"As expected, they made the room the same way you did, Senpai." Nagumo smiled and said so to Ishikura.

"Looks like it. So? How are you planning on deepening the ties between us by dragging us all the way to the 1st years' room?"

He asked Nagumo but Keisei, not quite having comprehended the situation, asked Nagumo.

"Deepening ties?"

"I told you, didn't I? I came to check on you guys since we're in the same group. We don't have any televisions or PCs or cell phones here. To be honest with you guys, there's nothing remotely similar to entertainment here. But it's not like we have absolutely nothing to play with." Saying that, Nagumo brought out a small box from inside the pocket of his jersey.

"Cards?"

"Playing cards in this day and age? I'm sure that's what you're thinking. But this is a staple of training camps much like this one."

All the first years present in the room had a tense posture, except Ryuuen, who ignored Nagumo to this point.

Nagumo casually sat down in a vacant spot. And then he peeled the vinyl tape off the sealed box, opening it.

"Please take your seats too, Senpai. Sorry 1st years but since there isn't much space, please go back to your beds." Nagumo stopped the first years who were taking their seats and said that.

"I'm not doing this." Tsunoda declined and turned his back.

"Please don't say that, let's do it. We may be able to talk about things we can't discuss anywhere else."

Having been stopped like that, Tsunoda resignedly took his seat. After him, Ishikura too, took his seat.

"To liven up the game, I'm thinking we should bet something on it. I'm looking for some good ideas."

The 1st years, already nervous given that they're dealing with a senior student, couldn't give out any ideas right away. It's probably mostly because they don't know what they should and should not say to the student council president.

Nagumo, too, knows that the 1st years would naturally shrink back like this.

"We've decided on the order in which we'll cook breakfast, right? Why don't we go back to that as a starting point and bet on this? If you keep losing again and again then in the worst case scenario, you'll have to cook breakfast up until the day this training camp ends. On the other hand, if you don't lose at all then you won't have to cook breakfast even once. That's what I'm trying to say."

"Oi, Nagumo. Isn't that something we should discuss with the whole group?" Ishikura called out to him.

"It's just the order in which we cook breakfast. Please give me some leeway with this at least."

After a moment of silence Ishikura agreed.

"Got it. Let's play cards and decide."

"We're fine with this too, right?" Keisei asked, turning towards the other first years.

As if instinctively, the first years turned their heads towards Ryuuen. He was the leader, not just for namesake.

Reading the room, Nagumo directed his question towards the leader.

"I have heard about your delinquent nature, Ryuuen-kun. Won't you like to join your seniors in the game?" Nagumo asked, while skillfully shuffling the cards in his hands.

"Not interested."

"Bullish, aren't you? Aren't you afraid of me, Ryuuen?"

"Student council president or whatever else you might be, I'll crush anyone who gets in my way." Even the seniors seemed to be stunned by his reply. Somewhere deep down they must've felt like fools for giving in to Nagumo's persuasion, when a first year flatly declined him.

"Heh."

Nagumo seems to now harbor a certain degree of interest in Ryuuen, the student who didn't budge an inch.

"I don't really dislike your type. But you're not cut out to be part of my student council."

"..." Ryuuen ignored him. Nevertheless, he sensed the gaze of other students on him.

"Whoever wants to, you can participate in this bullshit. If you lose it will be your class members that will cook breakfast for the days you have lost."

People wanted permission to participate and Ryuuen gave it to them. But, faced with a condition like this one, not many were willing to participate.

"Then that settles it, don't waste our time, two people join fast." Nagumo said, with an amused smile. He was already enjoying the first year cowering before him, witnessing this dilemma seemed to entertain him more though.

Koenji didn't concern himself with Nagumo, and Nagumo applied the same to him. Ignoring Koenji is the best approach for his attitude. According to Ichinose, these two have dealt with each other in the past. So it isn't a question why Nagumo is ignoring him, but rather an answer that whatever the deal was between these two doesn't provide Nagumo with Koenji's cooperation at all times.

What did it take to move Koenji? Even for once. I wanted to know the answer to that question, but unfortunately, I had other matters to focus on right now.

Two students, one from Class A and other from Class B, answered Nagumo's call. For them it must've been a golden opportunity to make connections with the Council president. Yuukimura stepped back to his bed as Nagumo dismissed him with a wave of his hand.

"We will play Old Maid. The last one to hold the Joker loses. Two from each school year will participate. Six of us in total for this match."

I'm not very familiar with playing cards but Old Maid is something even I know about.

"Participating students are free to switch out. But please just don't do so when we're in the middle of the game." Nagumo said so and started shuffling the cards.

And once he's done doing that he handed them over to the 3rd years. To ensure there's no cheating going on, he handed them over to the 1st years as well.

The first round proceeded smoothly and soon enough they were halfway through the game.

"Done."

The 3rd year, Ishikura, succeeded in ridding himself of all his cards. Vice President Kiriyama was next and then Nagumo finished third. The 2nd years' victory was decided early on, putting more pressure on the 1st years.

"Done."

Tsunoda found his way out of the game, the only two remaining players were the first years.

"That settles it. You are lucky the two of you are from different classes." Nagumo chuckled.

"Y-Yes." Ashamed of their loss, one of them squeaked out a response.

As Nagumo was shuffling the deck again, Kaneda climbed down from his bed. After a brief conversation with Ryuuen, which was inaudible to me, Kaneda turned towards the players.

"If you don't mind switching, I would like to play the next round." Kaneda announced boldly.

The two first years looked at each other. One of them—the student from Class B—exchanged his position with Kaneda.

Ryuuen propped himself up on his bed, so as to have a better view of the game.

The second round started soon after. From Ryuuen's position he had a clear view of Kaneda's cards and the Class A student sitting beside him. I was able to see the hand of one of the third years; he was holding a joker during the game. Halfway through the game he was able to get himself rid of the cursed card.

"That settles my hand." Kaneda got rid of his cards.

The remaining two players were Kiriyama and the Class A student. Judging from the number of cards I could confidently say Kiriyama was the one holding the joker.

It was the turn for the first year to pull a card. Unfortunately, he pulled the joker. With a resigned look he thrust forward his cards for Kiriyama to choose.

The game went on but Kiriyama never pulled the joker again, thus ensuring another loss for the first year.

"Maybe you should switch." Nagumo advised the Class A student who had lost twice in a row.

Unexpectedly, the one who stood up to replace him was none other than Ryuuen himself.

"Finally interested, I see." Nagumo chuckled.

"Kukuku, can't keep feeding you forever." Without a hint of nervousness he faced his seniors head on.

It was turn for Ishikura to pick up cards from Ryuuen's deck. Till now he had been picking cards smoothly, but this time when he saw Ryuuen's card his expression gave away his surprise.

Finding it amusing, Ryuuen chuckled.

"What's the matter, can't you pick one?" Tsunoda asked Ishikura, who replied by picking one card silently.

I had a clear view of the hand Tsunoda was playing. He picked up one card from Ishikura which was the ace of hearts. Uncannily, the same card got picked from him as well by the one sitting beside him: Kiriyama.

I wasn't able to see Tsunoda's face but I can see Kiriyama and Ishikura throwing puzzled glances to each other.

The game continued. Unlike the last two games, the one to finish first this time was a first year.

"Sums it up for me," Kaneda announced, pushing up his glasses.

"You seem to have talent for this." Nagumo complimented his win.

The next one to get rid of his cards was Nagumo. Now the players left were Ryuuen, Ishikura, Tsunoda and Kiriyama. Once again it was Ishikura's turn to pick from Ryuuen's hand.

"Don't waste my time, pick one." Ryuuen cornered him.

"Ryuuen, is that how you talk to your seniors?" Kiriyama tried policing Ryuuen, but he was ignored.

Feigning confidence Ishikura pulled up a card, Ryuuen's lips curled into a wide smile.

"There, it seems one of you will be cooking breakfast." Ryuuen announced his victory.

"Now that's interesting." Nagumo laughed it off, but there was definitely something going on.

In the end Ishikura never got rid of the joker, marking the first loss for the third year.

Nagumo shuffled the deck of cards once again and distributed them to everyone, ensuring a fair game. He wore a thin smile as he did so.

"Tell me, Senpai, if you had to nominate a first year student for student council, who would it be?" Nagumo asked Tsunoda who had the joker this time.

"Hmm, I mostly know the first year from the Basketball club. None of them hit me the type to run for council."

"I see, what about you, Senpai?"

"Maybe someone from Class A, like Kanzaki. He has a good name for himself in our year."

"That's a new name for me, noted."

Other first years sitting beside me had envious looks in their eyes. A recommendation from a senior could mean a lot, especially when it comes to things like student council.

"It seems I will have to play with all I have got," Tsunoda sighed, rubbing his forehead.

The match went on. Even though Nagumo tried to keep the match cool, hostility was silently filling the room. Ishikura and Tsunoda, who had abandoned their easy-going attitude towards the game, were actively competing to win.

Once again, Ryuuen and Kaneda emerged victorious. Both of them lost their cards after Nagumo. Even though it is a game of chance I see a few disturbing patterns emerging.

"Seems like it is my loss." Kiriyama announced his defeat without any bitterness.

"Maybe you two should switch now." He said to Ryuuen and Kaneda.

"Kukuku, you're right I am getting bored of this now."

Ryuuen stood up, Kaneda tried following him but was stopped by Ryuuen.

"I hope you don't mind if I play along, I am quite enjoying myself." Kaneda stayed back, giving a sly smile.

For the first time since he had entered the room, Nagumo looked at me.

Nagumo had called me out; to take Ryuuen's place. With a victorious grin Ryuuen stood up. Just before he walked past me, he slowed down. Our backs facing each other, he said in a low but firm voice:

"Joker's marked, but I have marked a few more."

After that small pause we continued on our own paths. I sat down opposite Nagumo, and he distributed the cards swiftly. If what Ryuuen said is true, then that explains a lot of previous events.

Apparently, Nagumo had marked the joker when the game began, which Kaneda confirmed after the second round. In the third round Ryuuen joined in, and when he did, he marked several other cards similar to that of joker, sowing the seed of confusion between the seniors.

The way Tsunoda and Ishikura had been acting, it wouldn't be far-fetched to assume they were informed about the marking beforehand. Now that they encountered new markings, none of them can be sure who did the new one. Ryuuen would be the prime suspect, however, judging from the way they were getting competitive over time, I have a feeling they suspected Nagumo as well.

Marking two cards in an identical fashion is very hard to do and would require a lot of precision. Given that the trick has been working till now, I can say Ryuuen had done it without anyone noticing, and that too with precision. He must've a great amount of experience with cards to pull off something like this.

I assessed my hand. It had several same ranked cards. Unfortunately, Joker was one of them. The game went on silently. Gradually I pulled two marked cards from Kaneda: one of them was ace of hearts while other was ace of diamond. Throughout the game I had a poker face.

"You don't seem to be enjoying yourself, Ayanokouji-kun."
"That's not true, I just have a hard time expressing myself."

"I see. Well you certainly are more athletic than you look."
"I guess so."
The seniors from third year are from the sports club so throwing curious glances was natural.

"You were there in the anchor's lane during the relay race. Did you witness the exchange between me and Horikita-senpai?" Nagumo asked.

"I am afraid I didn't."
"I see. Even though I had obtained the baton first, I stayed back to compete with Horikita-senpai. However, when he received his baton he refused to run, why do you think so?"
"Maybe his leg was cramped." I gave the stupidest answer I can think of.

"I see you aren't as bright as fast you are."

I could hear Tsunoda trying to suppress his giggles.

"Well, you see the thing is, within a few moments I left for my victory, Horikita-senpai ran... he ran so fast he beat me even though I had a lead."
"..." I stayed silent. The tension in the air was increasing; Nagumo's smile was slowly fading.

"Rumors have it that he ran the moment you received your baton. Could it be a coincidence that the time of those two events coincide?" Nagumo asked, looking right into my eyes.

"Coincidence can be freaky. I was freaked out as well when he suddenly started running. That too, after staying still like a statue for so long."

"Haha, I can feel the surprise. My words didn't move him after all. Well that being said, here my hand is settled." Nagumo was the first one to claim victory.

"What amazes me is that you came out on top even when most of the runners had a considerable lead. I don't remember you seeing in the track club. Why don't you join?" Ishikura invited me.

At the moment I had many marked cards in my hand. It wasn't surprising when Ishikura pulled out the joker from my hand, mistaking it with other marked cards.

"I would like to, but my grades are suffering. I need to invest time in studying." I excused myself as I put down the rest of the aces in my hands.

Ryuuen had marked aces, which were of the same rank. Not only would this confuse the opponent but also help you to collect like ranked cards.

The one aiding me with this information was none other than Kaneda who would always pull off the marked card from Nagumo.

Ryuuen was observing all of these events unfold. Perhaps it was to test me as a suspect. Nevertheless, I don't plan on backing down now.

Ever since Nagumo started meddling with the affairs of our class, I had noticed his keen interest in Ichinose. Even after my birthday, he had appointed her to meet him. It won't be long until he starts directly influencing our class.

While Nagumo was meeting with Ichinose, I arranged a meeting with the elder Horikita during that blind spot. The cause of his interest in me was revealed in that meeting: he wanted me to handle Nagumo once he was gone. He didn't know about Nagumo meddling in affairs of our class already, which I could use for my benefit.

Since then I had been monitoring Nagumo remotely, predicting his train of thought. Nagumo wanted revenge; he was humiliated in front of the whole school.

He couldn't harm Horikita head on. If he could, then he would've done so already in the span of his two years in school. There wouldn't be any need for him to hold off another exam with all three years participating in it. The most he could do was to distract Horikita.

"In the end, what he did during the relay race was something very out of character for him." Nagumo refreshed the topic, as if leading to something.

"You're right. He has been making some weird decisions lately." Tsunoda agreed.

The fifth round was already over with the loss of Ishikura.

"Kiriyama." Since he entered the room this was the first time Nagumo addressed Kiriyama directly.

"Yes?"
"What do you think about Horikita-senpai's actions at the time we issued the challenge for this special exam?"

"It was odd. I didn't think of him as someone who would tread such a risky path."

Nagumo shuffled the cards and distributed them to commence the sixth and the last round.

"Indeed. Would you like to know the details about my challenge with Horikita-senpai?" Nagumo asked, facing me.

"No need to answer; it's not just for you but for every first year present in this room." Nagumo paused briefly, to stress the importance of what he was going to say.

"It is my big group versus his big group. The one which scores the most points wins the challenge; the loser will have to pay ten million points to the winner." He announced, sounding exasperated in the last part.

The colossal amount of points stunned the first year's present in the room. Even Kaneda couldn't hide his surprise. I could hear whispers behind my back.

The senior students who were laughing at me a moment ago now wore serious expressions. Even though they were a third party the outcome to this challenge had the power to decide their fates as well.

In case Manabu loses, it will act as a leverage for them. But, in case he wins, he will be more powerful than ever.

"Hmm, for Manabu to add the deal for 10 million point it is really uncanny. Not many exams are left before our graduation. It's risking a lot given that we are in hot pursuit of him." Ishikura summarized.

"Just as you said, Senpai. I have always respected him to this point, but never had I felt fear from him. Because that man can never read my train of thought; being able to see the future too clearly was my power which he didn't share." Apparently Nagumo's internal monologue was leaking out.

"But, when he asked me to place 10 million on our bet. That was the time when I felt terror, my train of thought was accurately predicted and my advances were blockaded." He continued.

"Aren't you saying too much in front of the first years?" Tsunoda warned him.

"You're right... but what if there was a first year behind all this? What are your views on this, Ayanokouji-kun?"
To begin with, the question isn't for me. This was his intention from the moment he stepped into this room with Kiriyama and others. The one who was flabbergasted from the dawn of realisation was Kiriyama. Elder Horikita wouldn't have mentioned my deal to him. Now that things are falling in place for Kiriyama, inevitably his face expresses the shock he's going through.

What Nagumo wanted to assure here is if I am actually connected to the elder Horikita. After testing me for a while, he understands I won't be giving out any reaction. Thus the next surefire target is Kiriyama.

To keep your enemy close to you is a tactic many are familiar with. I had assumed Nagumo might know about Kiriyama's alliance with Horikita. However, after today's meeting I understood he didn't treat Kiriyama as an emergency threat and dealt with him in a slow burn manner. Nevertheless, Kiriyama can still leak out info if probed correctly which Nagumo did.

"I am afraid I can't see a first year persuading someone of his position into such a risky path. Maybe you know of someone?"

For the first time today, I answered Nagumo's question with another question. Only reason being this question wasn't for him either, it was another question meant to calm down Kiriyama.

Right now, to most people it might seem like a conversation between me and Nagumo. However, both of us were actually talking to Kiriyama.

"What nonsense are you spouting? Alright, he is acting weird, but why connect it with first years?"

Tsunoda interfered. The conversation we were having couldn't have continued any longer anyways. Kiriyama regained his calm. In spite of that, his poor handling had given away information.

Realising his own trick was backfiring at him, Nagumo had been creating more and more marking since the last round. Kaneda barely made it out thanks to his luck. However, in this round, it was a direct face off for me.

The game was nearing its end: the only one left were me, Nagumo, and Kiriyama. Due to some twisted fate all of the marked cards were still present, and I didn't have the joker.

Most of the players had given up on keeping the track of markings, but I have been monitoring all of them keenly. It is not possible for me to create such markings without being noticed, reason being my scarce experience with cards. Still, I can keep track of all the markings to remember which one is the joker. Even though Ryuuen's work is nearly flawless, Nagumo has spoiled it and now Joker is visible to me.

"Here it's your turn." Nagumo said, thrusting forward three cards.

I recognized the joker. After thinking for a few seconds I extended my hand to pick it up.

"Are you sure?" Nagumo asked before I could grab the card.

"I don't feel I can think my way through this."

"I will ask you to rethink your decision."

Nagumo said without smiling. Apparently, he understood that I had deduced the joker. What he wanted to ask was if I wanted this confrontation or not. If I back down right now, it would be a gesture of surrender—something he would enjoy deeply, and thus I would get off the radar.

I glanced at Kiriyama; our eyes met for a brief moment. I am assuming he is going to relay the events of this meeting to elder Horikita.

"I like my luck with this one." I said and drew out the ace of hearts, leaving Nagumo with the Joker.

"Very well." And thus the card game was settled. At the surface nothing had changed; the number of turns each year had to cook remained the same.

But

"This meeting is settled then. You guys put your back into it from tomorrow. I don't want to lose 10 million." Nagumo said exiting the room.

Nagumo

"Kukukuku"

Ryuuen

"Bravo, Bravo."
Koenji

A few individuals saw what actually happened in this meeting. After the incident with Chairman Sakayanagi I wanted to drop all my responsibilities. However, the war was already on its way.

Chapter -12 (Ordeal)

Chapter-12

(This chapter, I will be trying to write two scenes in parallel with the third POV narration, trying my best not to mess up. One scene will be from the present time, and the other will be from the time this trip began, in the bus.)

Climbing the mountains, the bus carried a group of youth to their next trial. Even on their own they were a hostile bunch, however, the one leading them was malicious enough to tame them all.

The bus had entered the tunnel a few minutes ago, and at last Sakagami-sensei's long, drawn out description was coming to an end. In the dim darkness he went silent, announcing the end of his speech. No one asked any questions, waiting for one man to speak.

When the bus came out of the tunnel, the light revealed Ryuuen sitting in front of the bus where Sakagami-sensei was standing a few moments ago.

"You heard sensei. Switch off and pass on all your mobile phones here." He pointed towards the tray kept beside his seat.

Starting from the front they deposited their cellphones. Once they were done, a total of thirty-nine cell phones were present there.

"You lot, get lost." Ryuuen signalled the first two rows to surrender their seats, which they did.

He signalled a few individuals to come forth. After a few moments Ishizaki, Albert, Kaneda, Ibuki, Manabe, Nishino, and Yabu stood there in front of him.

However, there was one figure missing from this meeting, a figure immersed in a different world. Ryuuen looked at her in silence waiting for her to notice but to no avail.

The silence made everyone uncomfortable; everyone looked at her. Making Ryuuen angry was the last thing one would like to do.

Shiina Hiyori was busy reading her book. She didn't realize she was the center of attention in this silence. The girl sitting beside her panickedly elbowed her.

"Hey, Hiyori. Ryuuen's calling you!" She whispered sharply.

"Oh..." Finishing the page, she peacefully closed the book and walked up to Ryuuen.

"Is there anything I can help you with, Ryuuen-kun?"
"Yes, come here." He invited her to his inner circle.

Now, the members for the meeting were complete.

"Is it about 'X', Ryuuen-shi?"

"Hmm, in this exam we will smoke him out."

"Huh, what's going on, why am I here?" Nishino asked, not understanding the situation.

"Hmm." He looked at Kaneda, signaling him to answer her questions. It wasn't just for her. Hiyori also needed to learn what was happening, and more importantly, what was going to happen.

Hiyori silently heard all of the story, not missing out 0n a single detail. She felt disgusted. She understood how she was caught in the zodiac sign exam and how Ryuuen's action backfired in the Sports festival.

Once Kaneda was done, Ryuuen resumed his plan to catch 'X'.

"Ryuuen-san, I want to help you in this, I will do anything. I just want to get revenge." Manabe offered her complete devotion. More than revenge, she wanted to prove herself of use to Ryuuen.

"Yes, you will be the center of this plan."

"O-Oh, what do I have to do?"
"Beat up Karuizawa."

"Huh?! Aren't we in all this trouble because you thought beating up Karuizawa was a good idea?" Ibuki interrupted. Since she received the explanation of the recent events from Kaneda, she had been furious. It was hard for her to contain herself anymore.

Nevertheless, Ryuuen ignored her and kept his gaze fixed on Manabe.

--

The girls returned from their dinner. Most of them chatted amiably, but the girls from Class D walked in silence.

"I will be going to the washroom then. Nene, you wanna come with me?" Karuizawa asked hopefully.

"I-I think I will pass. I don't feel like it right now." Nene Mori did her best to avoid sticking around her. Since last night she had gotten an idea of what was going on. The last thing she wanted was to get caught up in the storm brewing up.

"Ugh, fine. I will go alone." She scanned the corridor, from one corner to another, then rushed to the bathroom.

She opened the door to find it empty. Relief rushing through her body, she went into one of the stalls.

Knock Knock

"Karuizawa, is that you! Get out please. This is an emergency. Please get out or it won't end up gooood."

The one on the other end was Manabe. She barked with a crazy tone to her voice. She didn't feel pride or satisfaction; it was different from what was on the cruise ship.

Karuizawa panickedly dressed herself and ran out. She wanted to run to the closest door and escape, but, Manabe grabbed her by the hair and pushed her against the nearest wall.

"Come on, Karuizawa. We are in the same group. We are supposed to cozy up to each other." She said holding Karuizawa's cheeks.

"Y-You! I will report all of this to school! With evidence!" She squeaked her threat.

Logically, it was correct.

"Huh?" Manabe looked at Nishino and smiled. "What evidence?" She asked delightfully.

--

"But, Ryuuen-shi. Given that 'X' has clear evidence against Manabe, won't it backfire if she harasses Karuizawa again?"

Ryuuen was treading into very dangerous territory, and Kaneda sensed it. It was Ryuuen's speciality to walk on the boundary of law. He was sure that Ryuuen wasn't spouting nonsense. All he wanted were answers before he could approve any of it.

"Yes, he does... on his phone, that is." Ryuuen said, pointing towards all the cellphones deposited beside him.

Ibuki's eyes narrowed as she understood what he was getting at: The students weren't allowed to keep their phones with themselves in this special exam. That would mean that 'X' can't access the evidence against Manabe, unless he was already prepared and had some printouts of the picture, which was highly unlikely since the exam was announced on the bus and phones were confisticated suddenly.

"I see where you are getting at." Kaneda agreed.

"We will have to get Manabe in the same big group as Karuizawa if you want the plan to succeed." Ibuki pointed out the obvious.

"Hmm. I will ask Kanzaki to keep his nose out of my business on the girl's side. Make sure to push around Karuizawa until she ends up in the same group as Manabe."

"Ugh, this is sick." To Nishino, all of this was new but she didn't have much choice.

"Um, Ryuuen-kun. We can only push around Karuizawa-san if there is each one of us in all groups. If a group only consists of two or three classes, and we are left out, then Karuizawa-san can take shelter there." Hiyori, who was silent until now, highlighted a flaw.

"The four classes are locked in a tight competition, so the fired up leaders won't take such a passive approach." Ryuuen discarded that possibility.

"Karuizawa surrounds herself with bitchy girls like herself. They make it hard to get to her," Manabe said.

"Hmm. For that we have Nishino here, and if worse comes, also take Ibuki into your group. Track down whatever bitch tried spreading the news; trace out the path that leads to 'X'."
A plan to corner Karuizawa from all fronts was schemed. The only question that Kaneda had was — why?

"Ryuuen-shi, I remember we had established earlier that 'X' had gathered evidence for Karuizawa and protected her. However, how can we be sure that she knows about 'X' as well?"

Ryuuen was annoyed by his constant questions, but to keep his first line in the dark would backfire over time.

"Remember when I asked Manabe to confront Karuizawa in the mall? You saw the reaction Karuizawa gave when Manabe shrinked back, didn't you? She knows that she is being protected; it isn't Ichinose or Horikita, I am sure of it. It is either 'X' or someone very close to 'X' that is in contact with Karuizawa."

"And so when Karuizawa is faced with the same danger once again, she will have no choice but to seek help from 'X'."

"Hmm, I am going to put the whole class into tracking her and her conversations. Especially in the cafeteria since that is the time when girls meet boys."
"And you think 'X' is a guy?"

"Most likely. Even if he isn't, most of our plan consists of the girls' part. All of you present here stalk her as much as it takes. Don't let the news reach 'X'. Completely discreet."

In the cafeteria, there were going to be no blindspots since Ryuuen himself would be surveying it during that duration.

--

"You got evidence with you? Of what?"
Karuizawa realized that without his cellphone Ayanokouji couldn't present the evidence. She recalled how he texted her to not contact him during the duration of this special exam.

He had seen this coming, yet, he stepped back. She felt betrayed. Manabe was acting crazy, she was definitely trying to do something else.

Ayanokouji, help me.

She prayed deep down but no one was coming to save her. Until the exam was over, she couldn't do anything, nothing but persevere.

Manabe stood aside as someone entered the toilet. It was a senior, and she glanced at Karuizawa.

"Huh, what are you doing here?" She asked.

"Oh our friend slipped down and hurt her ankle so she is resting for a bit, right?" Nishino asked, while eyeing Karuizawa.

"Y-Yes."

Without paying much attention the senior girl went ahead to relieve herself. At least her entry gave Manabe a halt.

"Go, Karuizawa." Manabe let her free.

"Go to someone who can save you." Her voice was devoid of hatred; of malice; of joy—there was nothing.

--

"Ryuuen-kun, after seven days pass, what will you do when we get our phones back and 'X' launches his attacks? That would be the end for Manabe-san." Hiyori, who wanted to avoid taking such extreme measures, tried to talk Ryuuen out of it.

"You need to believe that I will find 'X' before that deadline."

"B-But Ryuuen-san, what if you weren't able to..." Frightened, Manabe barely formed the words.

"..." Everyone looked at Ryuuen; he remained silent.

"Then get yourself expelled by the end, and take Karuizawa down with you."

He uttered a few ominous words.

The words broke Manabe. She knew she was striding into a minacious territory. Little did she know that at the end of the road Ryuuen would abandon her if she failed.

Hiyori wanted to rebel, but she saw the firm resolution in Ryuuen's eyes. She had only read about them in books: when you look at a person and understand you can't persuade him. That was the look he gave. He has staked a lot already. Hiyori's existence didn't have what it took to bend his will.

"I understand." Manabe accepted her fate.

The meeting concluded with that; thus they returned to their own seats. After that, Ryuuen addressed the whole class. He created markings, he created a reporting hierarchy. None of the information shall go unnoticed; the system must be flawless. The one to mark the prime tower of 'X', Ichinose Honami, will be none other than Ryuuen's most observant piece: Shiina Hiyori.

--

The day passed, and the eventful time of midday lunch came. Students assembled in the cafeteria; boys and girls chatted amiably. But for some, it wasn't as bright as others.

To incur the wrath of the tyrant: Ryuuen Kakeru, or to face the terror of the unkown: "X". None of those paths would lead to her salvation, but all that she could do was to keep walking on the path she chose. There was no turning back.

At this point her hatred for Karuizawa was deeply buried under her fear. Ironically, she felt a sense of kinship to her, to her suffering that she had no way out.

"..."

Ayanokouji promised to protect her. He sat there eating his lunch, one bite after another, as if oblivious of the events going around him. Once so close, now he seemed unapproachable. Deep down she knew she was going to be abandoned sooner or later. Still, something within her didn't let hope go.

She didn't know what she was waiting for, but she waited. She didn't tell a soul about her condition. Even the classmates that understood her position chose to ignore her, their lips sealed by fear. It wasn't new to her. She looked at Ichinose.

Maybe I should tell her...

Her eyes met those of Ibuki.

Maybe not...

The two girls sat in the cafeteria, full of students, eating their lunch. Their friends surrounded them; still, it felt empty.

Ryuuen sat at the centre, smiling like always.

A trial of perseverance. To kill or get killed.

Both the girls faced an ordeal worse than their worst nightmares.

Both the pawns persisted in the game, to serve the hand that moved the pieces.

Chapter- 13

Chapter-13

(Ayanokouji's POV)

Second day of the exam began. The first four hours of the morning were devoted to physical classes. We were supposed to walk and run for eighteen kilometers in total around the course. Apparently it was to prepare students for the long-distance relay, which was one of the exams on the final day.

On the windy mountain road, it was like a pleasant morning walk. Those who were slightly unathletic worked up slight sweat, but there were no signs of irritation. Around a hundred meters behind us, Ryuuen walked with Ishizaki and Albert. No one slowed down enough to meet them as they didn't want to find out what happened if they did.

A few meters ahead, if one looks hard enough, they can spot a man with blond hairs ascending the slope of the mountain.

The mountain breeze washed up my face, my hairs enjoying its rush. Sun would make the journey more arduous, because it was winter. The sunshine had a sweet taste to it.

The path we were following led us into a forest; it was dense but nothing when compared to those on the island. Our trail was clearly visible, so no one gave it much of a thought.

"Hey, Ayanokouji! Catch up already," Makida yelled from a distance. I jogged past a sign—WILD BOARS—joining back with them.

Once I joined, all of us looked forward at once. On the long straight road one can see far away into the mountain, and none of it showed any signs of Koenji.

"..."

"Guess he ran off again." Yuukimura announced resignedly.

Students from other classes looked at us in confusion. They never understood why Koenji was such an oddball.

"I will go and get him." I had been looking for a chance to deal with Koenji alone. If he does know too much, then I might've to silence him one way or another.

In a silent agreement they nodded their heads.

I went into the verdant forest, searching the trail of Koenji. I advanced on the pathway created by nothing but dirt and rocks. Even though it was an unstable terrain I picked up my pace. The trees grew taller and taller. At last, I spotted the footprints Koenji had left behind.

After a few hundred meters the footprints simply ceased to exist; they led towards a tree. I sensed a wild presence near me. Instinctively I hid in the nearby bushes.

I heard a series of grunts and a pair of quadrupedal footsteps. Seemingly there were wild boars foraging food nearby. I was deep into the forest and so was Koenji. Once the grunts grew distant I came out of the bushes and climbed on to the tree that the footsteps led to.

I don't have much experience climbing trees, but these kinds in particular weren't difficult. I ascended to the canopy layer and scanned the nearby trees, searching for a student on top of it. The absurdity of the situation wasn't surprising given I was dealing with Koenji.

On a tree a few meters away I saw his golden hairs swaying as he jumped onto the next one.

"Don't tell me..." The wild boars went that way.

I jumped from one branch to another, but my experience was a far cry when compared to Koenji who had utmost faith in the branches he grabbed or stepped on. I have been trained for parkour before, but this is very different.

Soon enough he stopped. Unmoving like a statue, as if he was a part of the tree himself, he looked down on his prey. I had an idea of what he was trying to do when he pulled out a knife from his jersey.

[A/n: Yes guys. .. its knife once again]

I navigated towards him faster since I started getting a hang of it. As I was looking at the next branch I was supposed to grab, I heard a sharp squeal. When I turned back, Koenji wasn't there.

Jumping down from the tree I saw a small boar with a knife embedded in it's right eye. It was lying down, giving out painful grunts as Koenji's foot rested on top of its spine. Looking at the size of it, it would be safe to conclude that it wasn't an adult boar. Wild boars are ferocious beasts; had the adult been around they would've attacked Koenji by now, but I saw no signs of that happening.

Apparently, Koenji jumped on the Boar directly, in an attempt to deliver a trauma to it's spine.

"If it isn't Ayanokouji." He announced as I approached the scene.

"..."
"I assume you would like to have a talk with me."

I nodded, agreeing to his assumption. Without saying much, he picked up the small boar in his hands and started running deeper into the forest. I followed him silently, and we ran for a few minutes. In his way he would stop by to gather small branches that fell down.

It was better to get away from the hunting site since the owner of those children would soon be there. The face of the terrain gradually changed; the amount of grass steadily decreased as the ground grew drier.

Soon he came to a halt, putting down the boar and the branches he had gathered.

"Your name did ring a bell, however, your presence didn't justify it." He started talking.

"What do you mean?"

"To think you were related to Ayanokouji himself. Even though he disappeared, the name itself holds a power in the upper echelon of the society."

"..." How much does he know?
"Son of Ayanokouji, your existence has caught my attention. Go ahead, you have earned my audience."

It seems like it is futile to run away from the long shadow that man casts. No matter how far, I am still under it.

Koenji sat down and started flaying the boar he had just hunted.

"Why were you there on the rooftop that night?"

"Don't disappoint me," he said in his self-important tone.

[A/n: If you all remember Koenji had interrupted the conversation between Ayanokouji and the whiteroom statistician while serving the dinner, following that lead Koenji stood where he stood that night]

Blessed as he is, Koenji possesses prodigious observation and deduction skills. Running in circles won't distract him.

"Eugenics Association—why would you abandon it?"

The genetic superiority Koenji family has achieved was portrayed in the young man sitting in front of me. Such a merit couldn't be amassed in just a few generations. It wasn't something you can pull from a lottery; a family would've to actively strive to improve their genetics to achieve what stood before me.

The Koenji conglomerate is a firm known widely throughout Japan. At first I had my doubts, but after seeing the Koenji, I was sure that the conglomerate is a part of Eugenics. It wouldn't be out of question if it was the headquarters for the association.

"Fufufu. I see you've been taught a lot in that place. ...what was the name again? White room?" Even when faced with his past, his smile didn't waver. He reflected the question right back at me.

As he talked to me, he lit up a fire, and started cooking the flayed boar.

"Seeing that you know about its existence, did the Koenji conglomerate ever sponsor the project ?" However, this was a chance to see if he had any connections to the place, to see how much he knows.

The amount of money that went into operating White Room is colossal. It is nearly impossible for one man to gather that sum in his lifetime. Naturally, that man had sponsors, to whom the existence of White Room would be known.

"Hmm, out of curiosity. After two successive failures of their 'Generations' project, we withdrew our support and reported back to the Eugenics Association."

"I see."
The existence of White Room projects beside us generations, was unknown to me...

"People are born unequal. Even someone like your father couldn't change that. That's what we concluded and discarded his plan as a fool's crusade, however..."
He took a pause, his smile fading away. One would rarely see Koenji saying sensible things. If it wasn't for my background, I doubt he would speak to me for as long as he did.

"Unstirred by our withdrawal, your father kept going. In the end, his will had bent the very laws of this world: the 'Generations' project produced its first masterpiece."

He looked directly into my eyes. There was nothing more left to say. It won't be hard for him to deduce the identity of that masterpiece after witnessing the events from that night.

The conversation till now had highlighted that Koenji had more information on me than I had on him. Till now he hasn't given me a chance to dig out his past.

"You could've enjoyed the halcyon of your youth, romancing beautiful women, basking in your own beauty. Like me. But you chose to shrink back; a truly pathetic decision by someone dubbed as the 'masterpiece' of the fourth generation."

"Just like you, my existence inhibits the growth of the people around me."

"The actions you've been taking in the past contradicts your statement."

Koenji didn't know about Chabashira trying to manipulate me. Most won't, but he easily traced out the contradiction.

"This school is an open playground, Ayanokouji. You will regret the time you waste idly. We both know what fate awaits you outside the boundaries of this school."

I never gave his words a deep thought until today, but, I will think later about what he just said.

"The empathy you display here is new to me."

"Fufufu, ever calculating. My past won't help you in any way. Reconsider your condition now: You're imperfect; not ready to face me head on yet. The day you're ready to leave your shortcomings behind, come back to face me."
Concluding his pompous speech, he stood up and walked away, holding a stick that carried half of the cooked boar meat on it. The other half was left for me.

I cleared up the remaining ashes while eating the boar meat. I should get out of here soon. The school would send staff to check up upon the smoke that was rising.

I heard footsteps approaching me. Guess I was late. A familiar figure emerged from the woods. Only one person. It's that lady who was from White Room.

"Heh. The lap of nature must feel new to you."

"..."

Chapter- 14

Chapter- 14

(Ichinose's POV)

We had free time to spare in our room, thus an odd gathering took place. Four girls including me sat in a relaxed posture trying to figure out the working of the exam.

Shiina-san seemed to be genuinely interested in the material school had provided us, while Ibuki-san scratched her head with visible confusion.

"Mii-chan, what do they mean by Koan introspection here?" I asked her with an inquisitive gaze.

After thinking for a moment she put her index finger on her lip and looked at the ceiling. It appears that it is something hard to define.

"Zen riddles, might be the term you're thinking of," Shiina-san said in a soft voice.

"Yes! Zen riddles. They're used to test the progress of students in Zazen." Mii-chan exclaimed.

"Do you know the answer to these? Most of them seem to have Chinese origin." I tilted my head at the sight of senseless questions that stared back at me. Mii-chan shares Chinese origin. Hopefully she can help us get through this.

"Well... about that, I might know a few but most of them seem new to me." She admitted, a little disappointed in herself.

The four of us silently stared at each other. Ibuki-san usually prefers to be alone, but she is sticking with us for some unknown reason. Anyways, it will help the group if she can alleviate her performance when it comes to the theory of Zazen, since the instructor has been having a lot of back and forth with her regarding that matter.

"Ibuki-san, I was planning to discuss a few of these questions. You won't mind if we start from you?"

"Eh, leave me out." She tried to escape.

"Thing is that our classroom has several cameras in there. As Sakayanagi-san said earlier, there is a good chance that our daily behaviour is being evaluated." I didn't point to it directly, but Ibuki-san understood that her lack of interest was hindering the progress of our group.

"Uhh, alright, just sound sane," she said resignedly.

"Nice!" I clapped both of my hands, gathering their attention for what was to come.

"Let's start with classical one: 'What is Buddha?'"

"'This mind is Buddha.'"

"Flax seed."

"Dried Dung."

All three of them answered.

"..." Where did I go wrong?

Following the silence, I turned the page to look at the answer for the same question.

"Why do all your answers match to these. ...?" I asked in a lost manner. Just what becomes of a person at the end of Zazen?

"Hehe, I told you I am listening to the lessons." Ibuki-san smirked.

Her answer seemed to be more of a coincidence than a well thought out one, but who am I to question it if the great monk Ummon reached the same conclusion.

"Umm, we got the right answers so nothing to be worried about." Mii-chan concluded.

"I will try asking the next one." She announced happily flipping the pages.

She recited.

[A/n: Now's your chance folks try answering]

"Answer and die, at least you will die winning." Ibuki answered.

We exchanged nervous looks. Well, that doesn't sound like what you should do I guess...

"I think not answering it and living would be a better option." Shiina-san, who only spoke answers, did her thing.

"I agree. Passing on the answer isn't as important as their own life..." I second her thoughts.

Nodding at our answers, Mii-chan continued.

"I guess as long as Zen prevails we won't be getting the answers from it." She came to a rather tragic conclusion.

"Well, maybe Zen answers those who are worth dying for," I said.

Shiina-san didn't say it, but she agreed with my opinion by nodding slowly.

"Now it's your turn, Hiyori-san." Mii-chan passed the baton to Shiina-san.

"Oh."

Sitting on her seat she flipped the pages without making much sound, as if caressing the book.

"Ichinose-san, I would like to hear your answer on this one," she said and pointed at the question in her book.

"Um..."

Before I was born? My birth... rebirth... did my face ever change? And why does it not say 'What was my original face'?

I see. The assumption here is that I have the same face that I had since my time of birth, maybe even before that. The face of an innocent infant — did I have that?

No.

A middle schooler who is still figuring out how the world works?

No. My face has changed; several times, if not once.

"Human spirit undergoes a series of changes, the same integrity doesn't persist forever, yet continues to change; becoming dissimilar. A clear difference can be traced, even in my present face compared to my past. The spirit within me isn't of anyone else, but my own. And that is identical, starkly my face."

I answered it all in one breath. Everyone grew quiet; Shiina-san closed her book; Mii-chan looked at me with a slight discomfort.

Clap Clap

I looked at the door where Arisu Sakayangi stood. She clapped lightly and started walking towards us slowly, holding on to her cane. Kamuro-san followed her silently, followed by Horikita-san and Kushida-san who were out to get water.

"I doubt they were expecting such a tactful answer. I doubt if even the instructors would expect that from any student." She sat down on the chair near me.

"Tell me, Ichinose-san, are you a good person?" She asked, looking into my eyes.

The atmosphere got tense from the moment she took her seat. Mii-chan had shrunk back, while Ibuki-san didn't pay much attention.

"If you can elaborate what you mean from a good person," I replied.

"I don't mind whatever you assume. I just want you to answer the question I asked." Sakayanagi-san didn't let me have a lead.

"If you want my answer, then I don't think I am the correct one to judge if I am a good person."

The notion of a 'good person' or 'bad person' is formed by people other than you, but I considered her question.

'Am I a good person?' I asked myself.

Yes, I am.

"Fufu, you're dodging my question. Seems like you're afraid to answer it." She provoked me.

"You're right I had my doubts, but I have arrived at the answer now."

"And what is it?"
"I am a good person."

The room was still silent. Sakayanagi prolonged the silence, in hopes of breaking my composure. But, it was of no use: the answer I had arrived on was absolute.

"You're truly a scary person."

I turned back to look behind me. Was she talking to someone else?

"Me?" I asked while tilting my head and pointing my index finger towards my chin.

"Fufu. Yes, you."

Hah! Me? Scary? She is rumoured to be ruthless and merciless. Why would I scare her?
"Why would you say so?"

"Because you're truly a good person, unlike any I have met before." She concluded.

Horikita-san agreed with her opinion, nodding with her arms crossed, while Kushida-san looked at me with narrow eyes.

—--

(Hiyori's POV)

The bell rang, announcing the end of our break. Ichinose-san had overcome her trial, Sakayanagi-san accepted the results.

Classes proceeded as usual. I am new to meditation, but it gives me time to live in my head. On top of that, I also get points for sitting still and wandering into my mind.

But when I open my eyes, I see the impolitic situation at hand. Dragged forcefully into all of this, I had no choice but to play my part.

Once the class ended we made our way to the cafeteria. Usually I don't observe many people, but I can feel the gloomy atmosphere.

Is it because I can see their reprehensible intentions that I judge them as grim people? They're laughing, but none of it reaches their eyes. My own class doesn't feel my own.

Shaking my head I took my food onto my plate and sat down beside Ibuki-san. We were tied together for the time to come as the information network established earlier demands us to do so.

I kept my eye on Ichinose-san. I must make sure that the word of Karuizawa-san's ordeal doesn't reach her.

But, then what about the ordeal Manabe is facing? Is her suffering all for naught? Even if she is a traitor, I don't think she deserves to be in this situation.

I shook my head, shaking off those thoughts. I can feel his eyes burning on my back; he is watching it all. Ryuuen Kakeru will make sure that he gets through this plan.

Ibuki-san's chair was pushed back by her thighs as she stood up to move. She might not be the most observant but she is always alert. Walking past Horikita-san, she took her seat behind her.

While I lamented the situation sitting alone, a rather unexpected event took place.

"You've been looking kinda down, Shiina-san. Want to talk about it?" Ichinose-san slid on the seat which carried Ibuki-san not a few moments ago.

"I just have a hard time expressing myself. I am quite enjoying the camp." I lied.

"Ohhhh..."She said, voice like music singing, slowly dying; a timbre like a moan.

"..." We stayed silent. Fate had decided that we were enemies.

I have read numerous tales of fools seeking vengeance against their fate. Few succeeded; most failed. But I wonder if any of it was worth changing your fate.

"I know we can't share a lot of things, but if you feel I can help you then don't hesitate to ask me, alright? We're a team after all!" She chimed like a blissful bell.

"Your words put me at ease, Ichinose-san. I will tell you if I need help with anything."
We nodded at each other slightly and she was ready to leave, however, it seems the meeting was going to go a little longer.

"You won't mind if I take a seat here?"

A question which had only one answer: yes. I nodded slightly to his question. His presence drew numerous eyes upon me. I sensed envy in them but I kept my calm.

"Yes, President Nagumo. This is Shiina Hiyori-san." Ichinose-san introduced me to him. I was not a foreigner, thus, he didn't need an introduction so she skipped that part.

"Oof, I told you, just address me as senpai."

"O-Oh yeah, sure thing, senpai."

"Nice to meet you, Shiina." He extended his hand. I shook it lightly. He wore a rather unique smelling cologne; it was pleasant.

"Nice to meet you too, Nagumo-senpai." This amount of attention was something new to me. Events like these were only when Ryuuen-kun would summon me in front of the whole class.

"I never noticed you with Ichinose before. You two share the small group?"

"Yes, we do. It is a great experience."

"Indeed, she is a wonderful person. No wonder you feel the same way," he said looking at Ichinose who shrank back a little on hearing the compliment.

Enjoying the slight moment of catching Ichinose-san off guard, I chuckled slightly, nodding in agreement, adding a little to her embarrassment.

"Hey! Nagumo-kun! Come eat with us." A group of second year girls hijacked Nagumo senpai and took him away from us.

With a hasty farewell he departed. Another familiar figure appeared to talk to Ichinose-san. She is surely popular; unlike me.

"I have a message from Hirata."

The only person I have shared my books with. We went through the book fare together; thus, we share a special bond, but, then why won't he look at me?
Even when he does, his eyes remain the same: there was no sense of kinship.

I looked at Ichinose-san. Looking at her I realised: this wasn't a place I belonged to; I can't share my secrets with them. Bound by the same law, I must leave this meeting for their discussion as well.

"Alright, Shiina-san, I will be leaving then." She left with those parting words. Right, this was my seat to begin with.

Once they left, Kaneda and Albert followed their trail.

The coming two days passed in the same fashion. Nothing changed: 'X' was still hiding; Ryuuen relentlessly searched for any opportunity to pounce on 'X'.

—--

(Third person POV)

Around the fourth night, the girls gradually gathered in the public bath. Sweet giggles filled the air, small towels covering their bodies. This was the only time for them to relax in the steamy bath.

Her classmates weren't around, thus, Mii-chan cautiously advanced into the territory.

"Oh, hey there." As much as she wanted to avoid everyone, her eyes accidentally met those of Amikura Mako.

"H-Hey there." Mii-chan was usually cheerful and open with the people she knew. But those who weren't close to her would often perceive her as someone introverted.

"Looks like we're heading towards the same place. Let's gooo!" Hitomi exclaimed.

The doors to the bath opened, revealing a blessing of girls, frollicking around in the water heated by nature.

Visibility was low due to the steam. Thus, no one really cared about the small towel on them being misplaced.

Mii-chan spotted Horikita sitting in the water, body engulfed till collar bone. Her sharp gaze was still on guard, crimson eyes scanning the surroundings.

The three of them slowly descended into the pool of water.

Splash

"Hitomi!!" Mako exclaimed.

The girl who splashed water on the newcomers indiscriminately had opened the window of opportunity for Mii-chan. Grabbing the chance, she dipped into the water, and distanced herself peacefully.

"Phew, that was close." She said, rubbing off water from her hairs. She looked around and saw Sakayanagi sitting on the ground, legs dipped in water.

Sakayanagi took a little water in her small hands and poured it onto her body. White hair glowing brighter than the steam surrounding her, one would mistake her to be a fairy. As always, she was accompanied by Kamuro whose indifferent expression didn't match the atmosphere.

Once Mii-chan realised Sakayanagi was looking at her, she hastily shifted her gaze.

Where is Honami-chaannnn??

She asked herself exasperatedly. Bubbles sprouted on the water surface in front of her. Before she could realise what was happening, light brown hair came up from the water.

"Mii-chan!"
"Kushida-san!"

"This is fun. Just go into the water and pop up in front of random people." Kushida explained amiably.

"Erm, I think I will skip that."

"Haha, sure thing. Apart from that, it seems you've grown a lot," Kushida said, scanning Mii-chan's body.

Last time Kushida saw her body was on the cruise ship. It seems Mii-chan has been growing recently. Uncomfortable with the compliment, Mii-chan shrank into the water.

Now they were the centre of attention. Kushida had a body that would make any girl envious. It was an unspoken announcement: the competition had begun.

"Kushida-san, you're blessed with a good body, but Andou-san here might just be up to you." Hitomi issued the challenge, but didn't participate herself.

"Ehhh, leave me out of this." Andou wasn't confident in her body; she wrapped the towel around herself tightly.

On the other hand, Kushida didn't have any issues with the girls looking at her.

"I mean, you should be confident about your body. You're really blessed." Kushida complimented her out of courtesy.

"Fufu." Sakayanagi chuckled lightly. She looked over her shoulder to see Kamuro.

Understanding the signal, Kamuro sat down to hear her out.

"Yes?"

"Nothing. Just look at yourself. Your womanly charms exceed that of any present here, yet you fail to use them."
"I am not much into guys."

"Unless... I make you seduce one..."

"..." Nonsense. Kamuro was peeved, but, despite being chafed, she didn't let it reach her tongue.

Ugh, not this.

"Fufufu, you make a cute face. Very enjoyable."
Teasing her further, Sakayanagi genuinely enjoyed the reactions of her 'friend'.

"You can relax. I have a guy you need to stalk, but don't think about seducing him."

"Huh? Who's it?"

"He is in Class D right now, but that might change soon. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. After this test is over, figure out his daily routine."

Kamuro didn't get a good feeling from this. For Sakayanagi to take interest in someone from Class D? It didn't make sense, but most of her commands didn't until time came.

It was needless to say that doing this task in a discreet manner took utmost priority.

"Got it."

Creak

The sliding door opened, revealing a girl with cherry blonde hair.

"Nyahaha! A hot bath after a good day of work!"

The childish competition going on between the girls concluded immediately after her entry. No one talked about it, but her superiority was established.

Kushida, the former victor, felt a wave of disgust flow through her. But she didn't let any of it show.

Following Ichinose, Ibuki and Shiina entered the bathroom. Class C monitored them everywhere, that included the bath.

The two girls, Ibuki and Shiina, sauntered behind with the soles of their feet scratching against the soaked tiles.

Eyes traversing across the band of vivacious girls, they come to a halt, fixated, to rest.

Shiina trotted to the waters, Ibuki trailing behind her back clad in a thin, white towel reaching her neckline.

Ibuki didn't want to stand close to her. She was pretty; not pretty in the way of a maturity that stirs the sighing of wind wild, eyes embedded to tresses calling them dark and disturbed. No, she was beautiful like a forest fire: to be adored from a distance, but not up close.

"Don't be slow, Ibuki-san," Shiina said, her cheek turned slightly towards her, but her eyes were resting, still, fixated.

"I'm not slow." She grunted, closing the distance unwittingly.

—--

Reunited with Ichinose, Mii-chan could let her guard down and enjoy the bath. Both of them took a corner and simmered down in the warm water.

"Say, Mii-chan, was there someone who you liked before you came to this school?" Ichinose and Mii-chan had been close friends for a while now. Out of curiosity she asked.

"Erm, before coming here... I don't recall anyone like that," she answered with her eyes wandering throughout the room.

Ichinose's lips curled into a mischievous smile.

"And after coming here?"

"Ummm, I... don't know."

"Hehe, it's Hirata-kun isn't it?" She went directly to the heart of the matter.

[A/n: In the first semester there was a competition to decide who was the hottest guy of their year, Ichinose was the one who counted the winning votes for Hirata.]

"Whaa! How did you know??!!" Everyone turned towards them when Mii-chan exclaimed.

"Hush."
Her heart started pounding against her chest. She can only see him from far. Lately, he has stopped being the amiable person he was. It made her a little uncomfortable. Nevertheless, her attraction for him didn't decrease.

"How did you knowww?" Mii-chan whispered sharply.

"Remember I collected your votes for hottest guys?"
"Oh, makes sense."
"You've been a little down lately. I wanted to ask if it was about Hirata-kun."
"..." Mii-chan nodded slowly, ashamed for no apparent reason.

"I thought so... Hirata-kun has been going through a lot recently. He wants to change himself and the class. But he is doing it all to protect us."

She didn't understand why Ichinose told her that, but even if it was just an inch, she felt closer to Hirata. She felt relieved.

"... I wish I could help him."

"Nyahaha, don't worry about that. Big sister here will be your wingwoman."

"Wait, what do you mean?"

Ichinose winked at her mischievously and left without answering.

"Wait Honami-chaaan... Honami-chaaaan!" All she could afford was to sharply whisper.

Wrapping herself with a towel, Ichinose walked out of the hot bath before everyone. Witnessing this development, Shiina left Ibuki and followed Ichinose, following her path.

Ibuki stayed back to keep an eye on Kushida and Horikita.

Ichinose entered the empty dressing room. It was all made of wood.

"This smell of wood reminds me of my home," Ichinose said to herself as she walked around looking at the roof.

"Bruh!!!"

"You'll kill the girl on be..."

"Bakemono!!"

Screams leaked out from the boy's changing room, which was on the other side of the wall.

"Huh, what's that... who're they talking about...?" Ichinose asked herself.

Eavesdropping their conversation won't be a good idea—

"Ayanokouji! You're a monster!"

Ba-Dump.

Ayanokouji?

Well...

Ichinose walked towards the wall, in a very roundabout path; zig-zag, to be accurate. She hunched her back a little and closed her eyes to sharpen her senses.

"Hehe, no one will know—"

"The scent of water vapours rising from wood does bring back a lot of memories." Behind Ichinose, Shiina appeared out of thin air. Reacting to her voice, Ichinose arched her back straight at once.

"Eeek!"

Ichinose realised her reply wasn't human-like, so she bowed down, apologising to Shina.

"I didn't realise you were here, Shiina-san."

"Oh, I just followed you. You said I can talk to you if something was bothering me right?" Shiina said something unexpected.

"Yes, please. If I can help in any way possible I would like to." Ichinose replied gaining her composure.
"Even if it could end in your loss, would you help your friend to avoid a greater loss?" The question was well thought out; Ichinose answered without delay.

"Yes."

Shiina smiled at her, but, the smile didn't reach her eyes.

Chapter- 15

Chapter- 15

[A/n: I am going to write two scenes in parallel again, I have mentioned the timeline in the scenes so I hope it won't create confusion.]

(Ichinose's POV) (continuation of last chapter - 4th night)
It was hard to tell just by looking at her face: Shiina-san was having her own internal conflicts.

"Ichinose-san, there is someone who needs your help." The sombre expression she wore made it clear that it was a serious matter.

"Who is it, Shiina-san?"
Her lilac colored eyes gazed into those of mine. She stared at me for a few moments.

I saw hesitation dancing in her eyes, as the eyes curled away. What feelings were behind this behaviour?

"Shiina-san." I slowly walked up to her. Seeing I didn't meet any resistance, I gently entered her personal space.

"No matter who it is, if they need help that I can provide, then I will do it." I declared.

"Ichinose-san... I can't discuss this matter with you right now..."

—--

(Fifth day lunch break, cafeteria)

"Honami-chan, what's the matter? You've been spacing out a lot recently." Mii-chan interrupted me as I was staring towards a distant scenery.

"O-Oh, well it's nothing."

"Hmph." Mii-chan huffed and continued eating.

Since the start of the test, I had sensed something was off. However, I wasn't able to put my finger on it. Now that I saw the things going behind the scenes, the cafeteria looked like a stage... No, it was a path.

The chattering around me was slowly dying. Silence loomed over us; I could barely hear the first years talking. The awkward silence caught the attention of the seniors as well.

Ryuuen was walking around, followed by Ishizaki and Albert. He walked through a few tables; anticipation filled the air. However, I had an idea of where he was heading to.

"Huh, what does he want with Karuizawa now?" Shinohara, who sat on the same table as mine, muttered before gulping down her food.

—--

Around two o'clock at night, I opened my eyes. Propping myself up on my bed, slowly slithering out of it without making any sound.

Earlier last night, Shiina-san had asked me to go to the washroom at this time. It was supposed to be our secret meeting place in case it was empty. While I was a little sceptical of her, it's hard to think that she would scheme anything at a time like this.

As I walked through the wooden corridors, the creaking sounds of my footsteps became unavoidable. The chilly wind caressed my body gently. I clenched my jersey closer to myself in hopes of stopping it from doing so.

"Hah. The breeze of winter is unforgiving."

I ambled through the moonlit garden, the flowers sleeping soundly or so my mother believed. Variety of the garden was stupendous, however, what drew my attention was the flower Tsubaki.

Tsubaki, popularly known as Camellia, had a simple appearance, but still looked pretty. Red and round petals overlapped each other to form a small cup around its white pistils. On top of all this, the yellow stamen reminded me of the abundant colours of nature and the contrast it created.

A slightly sharp gust of wind passed by; a wilted Camellia dropped, falling from a stem.

My mother often used to tell me the Japanese folklore related to it. In the days of the samurai, to be beheaded was a dishonourable execution. When the Camellia wilts, the entire flower drops from the stem. It was considered a symbol of the execution and samurai who witnessed it saw it as a bad omen.

I shook off those thoughts and turned my eyes away from the wilted Camellia.

On the nearby flower bed I saw the lilac colour sparkling under the moonlight. It reminded me of Shiina-san.

Oh! I had to go to the washroom!

I tiptoed my way to the washroom. There I stayed, waiting patiently. After a few moments, the door rasped, indicating that someone had entered.

"Ichinose-san." Her soft voice was enough to identify her before she met my eyes.

"I have checked the stalls, there is no one else here." I reassured her.

Her gaze roved around, scanning the surroundings. Once sure of the fact that we were alone, she sighed deeply.

"Ichinose-san, you understand the relationship Karuizawa-san shares with Manabe-san,"

Right?

It was a question, yet presented as a statement.

"Huh?"

"What do you mean, Shiina-san?" I feigned ignorance.

"I know about it as well."

"Um, if you can elaborate what you're talking about then I might recall."

"Ichinose-san, I am talking about what happened on the cruise ship." Her voice sounded slightly disappointed. Afraid that feigning further ignorance would deteriorate the condition, so I decided to speak up.

"I see... so you know about it as well?"
To my answer she nodded slightly. As I recalled the events of the cruise ship, uneasiness spread through my body.

It was an utter defeat. Alongside Horikita I had been keeping an eye out for the safety of Karuizawa-san, but during the sports festival she told us not to worry about her anymore. Apparently Manabe and her friends didn't bother her anymore. Even after the sports festival passed, Karuizawa-san wasn't targeted. Naturally, I grew relaxed on that matter.

But now, in a completely different special exam, months after that incident, a completely unrelated person is interrogating me about it. I couldn't help but feel worried by this sudden development.

"I know, Ichinose-san. After what happened there, why would you let Karuizawa-san go into the same small group as Manabe-san?"

The leading question she asked heightened my anxiety. A premonition; I could feel something welling in my chest.

"We talked over it alone. She reassured me, saying she had it all in control. Thus, I didn't bother her. Why would you ask that, Shiina-san?"

"..." She didn't answer my question. The prolonged silence was unsettling.

"If I had made up my mind earlier, I could've avoided it during group formation..." She muttered to herself, but in the dead of night it was clearly audible.

"You could've stopped? What?" It felt like walking in the dark.

"Ichinose-san, the one who needs your help is your classmate. Karuizawa-san."
I ran my head through the memories of the times I saw her during this exam. She seemed to be fine!

"Don't tell me it's Manabe!"

"Yes, it is Manabe-san."

The confirmation froze my heart. She was in trouble, all this time. Kokoro-san isn't exactly the type of person that would defend their classmate when met by a force similar to Manabe, and neither was Nene Mori.

How can I help her? Can I just confront Manabe in front of everyone once I gain Karuizawa-san's support in gathering evidence?

"Tch, I shouldn't have deleted the evidence on the cruise ship." I didn't realise when my thoughts had leaked out in my voice.

Shiina-san, who had been waiting patiently for my reply, shook her head again.

"So the information was correct. You don't know about the existence of surviving evidence."

"No, no. As promised I had deleted all of it, Shiina-san." I reassured her. How was she mistaken?

"Ichinose-san, it hasn't been revealed to you. But, a person from your class has evidence; Ryuuen-kun is searching for that person relentlessly."

What?! Evidence of that event survived?

Her words don't make sense.

"Do you have any idea who this person might be?" She asked me in a calming voice.

"..." I didn't answer her, before my eyes flashed an image. Ayanokouji-kun stood with his back facing towards me.

"I see. So you have an idea who it might be." Shiina concluded.

"It was apparent from my expression, huh?"
"If you can tell me the identity of this person, then Karuizawa-san's suffering would end instantly." Shiina offered the hand of a goddess: a way out of all the problems.

Ryuuen-kun is searching for the person relentlessly.

Her previous words echoed through my head.

I was reminded of the eyes that monitored us in the cafeteria. Ryuuen wasn't just monitoring us pointlessly...

I shook my head frantically.

"As easy as it sounds, I can't put someone in danger just to save another person." I answered boldly.
"I thought so..." Her eyes saw through me, as if she was looking at something far behind me. She saw something else, not me.

"Shiina-san, tell me what's happening exactly. I will try my best to fix it up."

"..." After giving it a brief moment of thought Shiina-san nodded.

"Very well, Ichinose-san. I will tell you what's happening."

—--

Ryuuen took a seat beside Karuizawa. Once he did, she signalled her friends to leave.

Now alone, Ryuuen muttered a few words. As much as I wanted to interrupt, I couldn't do it. Hirata stood up from his chair, ready to approach Ryuuen. But, before he could, Kaneda stopped him; he whispered something in his ears. Whatever it was, it stopped Hirata in his tracks.

He didn't take one step further, watching helplessly from a distance as Ryuuen chatted with Karuizawa.

—--

"The one who holds the evidence against Manabe, is dubbed as 'X'."

The dubious alphabet 'X' was now connected to Ayanokouji-kun in my head.

"'X' has been exploiting Manabe-san by using the evidence against her. She committed treason as she was being blackmailed by 'X'."

"Wait, what do you mean treason?" The word blackmail chilled me with fear. To think Ayanokouji-kun was doing this...

"Manabe-san was the one who found out I was the VIP of Dragon group, and then 'X' reported the name."

Dots connected in my head. It was too much for me to take. Nevertheless, the words I heard justified the past. He had mysteriously decoded the correct name, while we had concluded the wrong one.

"I-I see."

"It doesn't seem like you knew about any of it." She assumed, almost sounding displeased.

"After the sports festival, Manabe-san was caught by Ryuuen-kun. Even though she was branded as a traitor, Ryuuen-kun gave her a chance to redeem herself."
"What was that chance?" I asked in a shaky voice.

"Ryuuen-kun has established a relation between 'X' and Karuizawa-san. Once Karuizawa-san is in danger, it will only be a matter of time until she contacts 'X'."

A relation between Ayanokouji-kun and Karuizawa-san? I rarely see them contacting each other. When did this happen...

The question was dwarfed by a realisation that dawned upon me. The exam was the perfect opportunity to do that since it would be at least a week until 'X' could return fire on them because of the absence of evidence.

"So the chance for Manabe-san to redeem herself was to throw herself into the fire once again." I completed the sentence.

The motion of Shiina-san's head confirmed my assumption.

The shape of the heinous schemes of both sides became more and more apparent to me.

"And that's why Class C has been monitoring us the whole time in the cafeteria... to track down 'X' once Karuizawa-san makes contact." I added.

"Yes."

I always wanted to hear Shiina-san speak more, but not in an unpleasant situation like this. For her to hold such a long conversation, going out of her way, now I was concerned what motivated her to tell me all of this.

Was it another scheme to smoke out the identity of 'X' from me?

The intermittent questions and incomplete answers at the beginning of our conversation made sense now. Shiina-san had been operating under the tentative assumption that I might be 'X'.

However, judging from my answers, not only did she conclude I wasn't 'X', but also the fact that I didn't have much insight into 'X's strategies.

Even then, why would she give me insight into the situation then? Revealing this to me would only hamper the plans of Class C.

"Shiina-san, why are you telling me so much about the plans of your class? You could've hid a lot of information and let me run amok to save Karuizawa-san." Regaining my composure, I questioned her back.

"That would be the wrong course of action, Ichinose-san. Another fact that Ryuuen-kun has deduced is that Karuizawa Kei is doing her best to hide her past."
"Karuizawa-san's past?"
"Yes, it's a very sensitive topic for her. She wants to protect that secret at any cost, or so her actions have implied" Shiina highlighted what stopped Karuizawa from seeking help.

"I see. I won't ask what it is... But if I try to confront Ryuuen-kun head on then he might reveal her past. Is that it?"

"Unfortunately."

"Shiina-san, even though you tell me all your deductions, I can't follow you suddenly and put someone from my class in danger."
"..." She sighed deeply, and took a deep breath.

"This fight is between 'X' and Ryuuen-kun. Manabe-san, who is innocent, is caught in that."

"And so is Manabe,"

"What I want you to understand is that the way Ryuuen-kun does things is wrong, but so are those of 'X'."
Her words challenged something deep within me.

"I don't know if you can do it, but you're a good person Ichinose-san. Won't you go against these wrongdoings?"

The harmless looking boy who accompanied me while we drank barley tea, now he sat at the origin of this chaos. Just like Shiina-san said, no matter the reason, his methods aren't ethical.

We had come closer during the sports festival, but as she explained further, the existence of Ayanokouji-kun grew more and more distant from me.

Even though we were fighting for the same side, we were polar opposites.

"You're right, Shiina-san. I will put a stop to this."

"Those words put me at ease. If you don't mind, what are you going to do?" She asked a question I wasn't prepared for, a little relieved from my words.

"I will wait till the end of this test. Once that happens I will make sure the things are sorted out."

"About that... you need to act before this test ends."

"But before the test I can't access the evidence you speak of."

"Ichinose-san, if you wait until the end of the test then there won't be anything left to fight for." Her words sent a chill down my spine.

"What do you mean?"
"I am going to tell you something only a few people from Class C know, including me."

She stayed silent to stress the importance of what she was going to say next.

"By the end of this test, if Ryuuen-kun is unable to catch 'X' then Manabe-san will expel herself and take Karuizawa-san down with her."

"What the hell?!" I could hear irritation leaking from my voice.

"Ryuuen-kun won't be able to deal any damage once the test is over, thus he has decided on doing this."

"To sacrifice his own classmate! That's lunatic!"
"Even though Manabe-san is a traitor, I don't think she deserves this." Shiina-san sounded genuinely troubled.

Now I understood the reason she was telling me so much about their strategies. She even went so far to reveal the final trump card of their plan to me.

"Tomorrow I will tell Ryuuen-kun that you know about Karuizawa's current situation. All you've to do is simply make contact with 'X' regarding this matter. Once you do that, Karuizawa-san and Manabe-san will be out of the turmoil. After that we can leave it to those two."

My breathing grew heavy just from imagining it. Betraying Ayanokouji-kun? Doing something like that is unthinkable.

"I understand how you feel Ichinose-san, but no one knows about this meeting of ours. 'X' hasn't provided you with most of the information, 'X' won't be able to deduce you were the reason his identity got exposed."
"It isn't about that, Shiina-san. I can't put my classmate in such a grave danger named Ryuuen."

Shiina-san shook her head, as if not sure what to say more.

"The methods of 'X' are wrong, Ichinose-san. These are simply the consequences of his actions. On the other hand, you have to choose between two innocents caught up in this."

"..."

The path ahead forks into several; the shut door of choice is yet translucent.

A choice has to be made soon...Putting things off is the biggest waste of life. It snatches away each day as it comes, promising a future by denying the present.

—--

Chapter- 16 (Discredited)

Chapter- 16

Discredited

(Third person POV)

(Fifth day in cafeteria)
Once Ryuuen sat down with Karuizawa, Hirata decided to confront the situation with a diplomatic approach.

But before he could reach them, Kaneda latched on to him.

"Get aside." Hirata warned him.

Kaneda reduced the distance between them and whispered:

"You see, Ryuuen-shi is in a foul mood. Who knows if you might make things worse. He might end up saying something about Karuizawa that you don't want others to know."

"Tch, what do you want?"
"Don't fret. We mean no harm to Karuizawa. Our target is someone else. We just want her to lead the way." Kaneda tactfully subdued Hirata, even though he had to lie for it.

Meanwhile, Ryuuen had just placed himself near Karuizawa.

"Guys, I have something to talk about with him. Leave already." Karuizawa commanded them in a shaky voice.

The moment the window of opportunity opened: Nene Mori and Kokoro Inogashira jumped out of it and left the table.

The two students sat at the centre of attention of the whole cafeteria.

"It's been an arduous week, hasn't it?" Ryuuen said in a low voice, taking a spoonful of food from her plate.

"Why're you doing this? I will make sure Manabe pays for this."

She acted tough, to the best of her abilities. However, a sense of loss resonated in her words.

Ryuuen didn't smile. Usually, he enjoyed himself to the fullest at times like these. But it felt distasteful that this matter had come so far.

"You're tired of all this, right?"

"Yes, please stop."
"I will stop, just help me with one thing." Ryuuen promised, as he picked up a spoon and placed it on the centre of the table.

"What's that?" She saw a ray of hope.
"Someone has promised you that they will protect you from all your enemies — let's say 'X'. My fight is with 'X'."
Hearing his words her eyes darted around the cafeteria, searching for her promised protector. Before she could lay her gaze on him, she stopped.

It was too late to hide his existence; Ryuuen had deduced a lot. But how? She recalled the events of the past. Was it her daily life that gave away the information?

"'X' promised you that he will fight for you, right? Now let him do that. Just tell me who they are, and I will leave you out of this shitfest."

"I won't. Once this test is over, I will make sure I report Manabe to the school." Karuizawa steeled her resolve. She kept repeating the same thing as if reciting an affirmation of a good future.

"That's cute," he said, a faint smile plucking at his lips. "Do you have the evidence to do so?"
"I... I will have it soon." She convinced herself.
"Kukuku, you see, 'X' never trusted you enough to give you the evidence, so that when time comes 'X' can backoff if it gets too dangerous. 'X' will abandon you without a second thought."

He planted a seed of doubt in Karuizawa.

"He abandoned Suzune in the sports festival too, didn't he? When even Ichinose wasn't saved, what makes you think he will save you?"

The past few days had chipped away her defences. Karuizawa was more vulnerable than ever.

She knew very little about the reasons behind Ayanokouji's actions. Moreover, she had seen him desert his classmates at times of chaos.

The gap of information was the thing Ryuuen targeted, filling it up with uncertainty.

Ayanokouji used to tell her that their relationship is profit based, yet she felt a sense of harmony while working for him, even though she didn't sense the same from him.

"Just like your past, things are repeating. No matter how much you try to avoid it, you can't."

"Huh? Stop speaking nonsense." Her expression was alerted, her eyes shifted restlessly.

"Did I hit a soft spot? Kukuku. Guess who told me about your past?"

His lips curled into a smile; Karuizawa felt betrayed.

"No way. He would never do that..."
"Are you sure?"

Ryuuen had figured out her past on his own. For 'X' to have such precise control over Karuizawa, he figured out that 'X' must know about it as well.

Asking leading questions just fed her doubts. Karuizawa sat down and ruminated over her situation.

"What will you do if I expose your past? Every other student you hurt will come after you. They're done licking their wounds, and ready to attack you."

No matter what choice she makes, Karuizawa will make an enemy. Her headstrong attitude had earned her a good amount of enemies.

"That's crap. I am not afraid of them." She tried to lie, but her voice didn't sound convincing.

"Hah. In my eyes you were a smart woman, but look at you now: you're regressing. Aren't you afraid of what will become of you if this continues?"
"I... will endure it. Once this exam ends, I will deal with Manabe myself."

"Once this exam ends I will do this; once this exam ends I will do that. What if you weren't there to see the end of this exam?"

"..."
—--

(Ayanokouji's POV)

The final event was on its way. Any further delay would've meant risking a lot for Ryuuen. The silence softly spoke for itself. Even the students listened to it quietly. Even the seniors who didn't have any interest carried out their meal quietly. Confrontations like these had an unspoken priority to it.

I was planning to collide with Ryuuen head on, but to my surprise, Karuizawa didn't give up my identity till now. Foreseeing such events, I had asked Karuizawa to not contact me during this test on the bus. Despite that, I didn't expect her to follow those orders to this extent.

At the moment, the two individuals were engaged in a psychological warfare that I can only imagine. A few minutes had passed since he sat down. It must've felt like a long dream filled with hopeless sorrow to her.

At last, Ryuuen stood up. But I didn't see any signs that pointed towards me.

"If the average of your small group falls below because of you, then what will you do?" he said, raising his voice.
"..." Karuizawa stood silent, her mind looking around. She had walked into a trap, and now the only way out was to give up my name.

"You will have to take the responsibility if because of you Manabe gets expelled."

The way he was announcing it in front of the cafeteria, it was meant to be a message for me.

"Huh? What crap is he spouting? Is Karuizawa dragging down the group or what?" Sudou asked me.

"Seems like it."

"Sounds troublesome." Akito added.

Ryuuen walked around Karuizawa, circling her while he looked at other students.

"There is a student who is leading Class D from the shadows; you know the identity of that student."

Confusion spread throughout the first years witnessing the event. Seniors didn't pay much attention to it. Kanzaki and Sakayanagi watched the events unfold carefully without disturbing the flow.

"Now that you know what's going to happen, it won't matter if I expose your past."

"No..." Her voice cracked, it was the crack you hear from a person just before they're about to cry.

The whole school was hearing him. Karuizawa's face turned pale. She stood in front of the gates of hell, no one there to stop them from opening.

Once she gives out the name, it will turn into an all out war within moments.

"Ryuuen, wait." The one who stood up for Karuizawa was Ichinose.

"You have my audience. Speak." Ryuuen answered immediately, as if expecting her call.

"Just leave Karuizawa-san alone. There is no point in going that far."

"What do you mean? You don't understand a thing here, do you?"
"I understand why you're doing all this, but I have a proposal." She said in a hurried tone.

"Before I hear your proposal, I would like to know this: what exactly do you understand?"
"You're doing all this because you want to protect Manabe-san." She replied with half truths which won't make sense to most.

Yet her reply was concerning. Ichinose doesn't have enough awareness on this matter to deduce Ryuuen's motivation.

"Kukuku, now that's funny. What am I trying to protect her from?"

"You're... you're trying to protect her from the evidence we have against her."

"I will honour your delusions. You just said 'we', that means you are in possession of the evidence you're talking about?"
"No..."
"Then who is?"

"..." Ichinose stayed silent, but she didn't back off. A fatal blunder.

"A classmate of ours has it. You're afraid of that, aren't you?"

"This classmate of yours — isn't that the one who is leading your class, using you as the face to hide behind?"

"I don't know about anything of that sort."

"As long as you don't answer that question of mine, I have no interest in any proposal you bring here."

A singular condition he wasn't going to compromise on.

"... Yes."
"Hm? Yes?" Ryuuen said, his hand cupped around his ear. "I am sorry, I can't hear you very well."
"Yes, the one holding the evidence is the one you're looking for." She admitted. Frustration was apparent from her voice. Seemingly, she has gained more insight into the situation.

Did Karuizawa tell her about the situation? That seems unlikely when I compare Karuizawa's lost reaction to Ichinose's immediate thinking once the threat of expulsion was revealed.

Another possible justification for Ichinose having this information is that someone from Ryuuen's side filled her in on the matter at hand.

While I was wondering about the different aspects, I felt someone staring at me. On turning my head, my eyes met those of Hirata... he was glaring at me.

The rage in his eyes originated from deep within his heart. This conversation had given him the missing leads he lacked about me.

"Very interesting. What is your proposal?"

"I promise Manabe-san won't be harmed by Class D in future. In return, you must promise that Karuizawa-san won't be threatened ever again by your class. On top of that, you or any of your classmates must never reveal her past to anyone else." Ichinose recited it all in one breath. Seemingly, it was practised beforehand.

"And what's the guarantee that your classmate who controls you behind the shadows will keep this deal?"

"In case the deal is breached from our side, I will take the responsibility and get myself expelled."

Her words stunned the first years. Ichinose Honami had offered herself up in order to save her friend. There was no need for a written deal: the whole school stood witness to the pact.

"And if it happens from your side, then the consequences you've avoided will follow you." She warned Ryuuen.

"That's entertaining. You have my word. I agree to the deal."

A smile lit up Ichinose's face. She looked at Karuizawa, who was about to cry. Karuizawa had gone through a lot in this exam, so it was hard for her to lower her guard.

Karuizawa stood up from her chair, but before she could walk away from Ryuuen, she was stopped.

"Before you chimps start celebrating, I have something to say to Class D." Ryuuen said a few unexpected words, rallying the attention of Class D students.

"The conversation I just had with Ichinose proves the existence of the hidden leader of your class — let's say 'X'."
"Wait, it does?" Sudou questioned me out of confusion. Akito, however, understood what Ryuuen meant to say, and so did the majority of Class D.

"'X' is your real leader. The leaders you support are fake ones serving him. How can you put your faith in people like these who continue to deceive you?"

"..." There was no denying what he said.

"A leader who doesn't take responsibility for defeat, one that uses fake ones to absorb any damage delivered to him. Can you trust someone like that to lead you? More than the welfare of your class, 'X' uses your support to protect himself."

"Out of all the people, I don't want to hear that from a tyrant like you, Ryuuen." Horikita stood up to stop him. Her brother was witnessing this exchange, yet she steeled her resolve to speak up.

"That's a stupid accusation: people only follow a tyrant as long as his methods work."

"That doesn't make you any different."

"You say that, yet you don't deny it. You, out of all the people, were the first piece to be sacrificed by 'X'. The sports festival was truly unfortunate for you, wasn't it?"

"That has nothing to do with this."
"Lying doesn't suit you. You know very well who was the one behind all that."

"..." The sports festival was a traumatic incident for Horikita. Even if she grew from that, it was still embedded deep in her psyche.

"Even your success in the special exam of summer vacation — you two shamelessly took the credit for it. But it wasn't you who triumphed over me. It was 'X'. How did it feel to deceive your own classmates for so long?"

A twisted question, framed to besmear Horikita's reputation alongside that of Ichinose. After the island exams, the names of Horikita Suzune and Ichinose Honami gained fame. Even Class A students would grow wary of us.
"Ichinose-san, Horikita-san. Tell him that's not true, please tell me it's a lie!" The one who grabbed this opportunity was none other than Kushida Kikyou.

"..."

"You guys are the real leaders of our class, right?" Kushida searched desperately for an answer.

"Honami-chan would never deceive us. There is no way." Mei-Yu Wang, Ichinose's close friend, tried to defend her. Regardless of her intentions, it only backfired. In a debate like this, all Kushida needed was a weaker person to oppose her opinion. Once that condition is met, she can bring forth logic that she couldn't say in a soliloquy.

"Mii-chan, the problem here isn't only that 'X' doesn't take the responsibility for their defeat. But also that Ichinose-san and Horikita-san had been taking credit for works they haven't done. Can you trust them knowing that they lacked the capabilities which produced the result we have seen?"
"I..."

"How can we know if this 'X' will save us if it requires a little self sacrifice? Even if they have the capabilities, what if they lack the willingness to do so?"

Kushida was weaving a perfect argument. Her adaptation to the situation is truly splendid. She is an impressive actress just like Horikita. However, she tops Horikita when it comes to dealing with situations requiring deep social understanding such as these.

"Kushida-san is right. I always felt something was off."
"Who do you think is this 'X'?"

"Shh, what if 'X' hears you. Seems like a dangerous person."
Whispers of Class D students steadily grew louder. Even the students of other classes were now discussing the prospect of the hidden leader. The previous success of our class didn't help in calming down the spreading fire. I felt a few people looking at me, but they would look away when I looked at them.

Had she predicted the situation, Ichinose could've lied her way out of this. However, the rate at which Ryuuen adapted to his new plan was alarming. Something that she can't keep up with.

"Look around yourself: even when his classmates are being accused 'X' is nowhere to be seen. 'X' is sitting among you, yet he stays silent." Ryuuen poured more fuel into the silent fire.

"Ayanokouji, this looks bad." Akito stood up from his chair and joined Hirata.

RINNGGGG

Fortunately, before the events could continue, the bell rang commencing the lunch break.

Ryuuen approached Hirata; I didn't sense any signs of violence. After exchanging a few words, both the parties parted their ways.

"I will go ahead then." Bidding farewell to Sudou, I walked back to my own group.

The girls who protected my identity today had their image besmeared. What Ryuuen did today has potentially discredited the leader system of Class D.

The three of them risked something very precious to them: Karuizawa, her past; Ichinose, herself; Horikita, her caution in front of her brother.

They ventured onto uncertain paths. Some were drove by the sense of emergency; another lamented her sealed fate. Even I myself learnt something new about their characters.

Ryuuen has struck the single, solitary match that burns the darkness shrouding my identity . He intends that I would have a bad time.

A single spark turns into an ember. An ember becomes a raging fire. The leaders could have set it all aflame, but they let the embers persist. The script would have soon burned both the sides down to cinders. Sacrifices were made; the script deviated; the disaster was, thus, evaded. A little spent fuel wasn't really squandered.

—--

Chapter- 17

(Ayanokouji's POV continued)
It was an hour since I left the cafeteria, there was a lingering sense of wariness between the students. The events of today afternoon had filled them with suspicion.

What Ryuuen said has created waves through all the classes. Other leaders including Ryuuen were actively trying to decode the identity of 'X'.

On top of that there was a hint of distrust between the Class D students themselves, knowing that someone like 'X' might be hearing your words would make anyone uncomfortable. Except for people like Koenji.

We were all sitting in our meditation class, for most students it was an arduous task to sit in the lotus pose for so long. However, Koenji had no problems doing that. With perfect posture he sat calmly, enjoying the moment.

I saw two proctors nodding at his form. Soon they noticed me, but before they could catch me looking at them, I closed my eyes.

We're being evaluated for every action in this classroom, as there are several cameras placed throughout the room. Our big group had assembled here to meditate, an absentee was something one won't even consider.

"Where's Ryuuen-kun? His friend with glasses is also missing." Our tutor asked Albert who was still wearing sunglasses inside the room.

The tutor's question was only answered by silence.

"Don't know." After a few moments, Albert answered in English. Ignoring a question asked by superiors would be frowned upon in society, thus, causing us to lose points in this test.

Ryuuen and Kaneda's absence was something already chipping away at our points. Whatever Ryuuen is doing, his actions reveal a hint of haste in it.

Since there was no point thinking about it, I closed my eyes and relaxed. Wondering about the questions that didn't have a sensible answer yet, I wish meditation could reveal answers to the world. However, all it reveals to me is what's within me.

Ring

The sound of the bell concluded the session, the third years left the room, following them the second, and lastly us.

There wasn't any enthusiasm that I felt for returning to my room, thus I took a stroll. A variety of students crossed me as all the classes had just ended. I could see different classes being friendly with each other, but again it was hard not to notice the lingering scepticism between them.

On my way I crossed the restroom, Akito was coming out of it as I passed it.

"Ayanokouji. I was going to your room to meet you just now."
"I see, what's the matter?" The possibility that Hirata might've already told Akito about me wasn't out of the question.

Akito looked around for a bit, it was surely a little crowded here.

"Maybe we should talk inside," He invited me inside the restroom.

"Sure."
Following him, we walked towards a corner. There were a few Class C students but I have been working as a messenger for Hirata and Ichinose during these days, so none of it would pose any threat.

"Is there any news from Ichinose? Hirata wants to know the reason behind her actions today in the cafeteria."
"I am on the same boat, unfortunately, I didn't have a chance to ask her about it."
"I see, on another note, Hirata has asked you to meet him in person today. Meeting point is towards the eighteen kilometres course we walk daily."

"That's quite a secluded place to set up a meeting, any particular reasons for it?"
"He hasn't told me anything yet, guess we will know when we meet."
"Alright, I will be there." Akito is acting normal, it doesn't seem he has a hint of what's going on yet.

Giving him an affirmative answer, I left the restroom. Hirata might be the last surviving influence on the class; it is no wonder he is making his moves now.

—--

(Ryuuen's POV)
Creak

As I ascended the stairs of the sorry building, it made squeaking noises. Corridors were all empty, stairways looked deserted; classes were going on so it wasn't a surprise that I didn't find any other students hanging around.

Kaneda quietly followed me, the distance between me and the wooden gate steadily decreased. Walking onto the rooftop, the bold colours of the sunset blazed into my eyes. The pleasant sunlight mellowed me out, I leaned against the fencing; the island occupied by this school even had mountains on it, how amusing.

"Kaneda, I am not a fan of two guys watching the sunset together."

Understanding the command, Kaneda distanced himself from me. It's convenient to have smart one's like him who can read the surroundings.

After a long time, I had finally found someone who could entertain me until the end. The thought of losing 'X's trail forever was an unpleasant one.

After following numerous leads, when I thought I had finally caught 'X', he slithered out once more.

I searched around the rooftop, there was one sole camera looking back at me. The scenery had lost my interest, so I turned towards the gate to leave.

"Ryuuen-shi, if you don't mind, would you like to discuss further strategy about the case?"

Kaneda joined me back, it seems even his patience is running out now.
"..." I stayed silent, expressing agreement.
"Today was a splendid victory, yet it doesn't seem that it is sufficient to smoke out 'X'."
"Hmm, I know that. Majority of his pawns were crushed in front of him, yet I didn't see any signs of resistance,"
"His failed attempt to employ Ichinose to stop you might've worked for now but it won't work for long."

"'X' didn't employ Ichinose. According to Shiina, last night Ichinose met Karuizawa in the restroom. Seemingly it was Karuizawa that informed Ichinose about the situation, in hopes of gaining help from 'X'. However, that deal wouldn't be something 'X' would engineer." I explained while descending the stairs.
"I see, so was Ichinose acting on her own?"
"Hmm."

"That's resourceful,"

"What are you going to do with Hirata now? Following your commands, I can confirm Hirata knows about Karuizawa's past as well. Today he stopped his advances once I hinted him of the danger," Kaneda reported.

Exiting the building I ambled around the ground, the cameras placed there didn't capture all the corridors, mostly the main routes. Cameras were heavily concentrated in our classrooms, where students were being evaluated for their every movement.
"That's helpful, he was spouting some amusing things."

"Oh, what was it about?"

"That doesn't matter, tonight I will crush him too,"

"Wait, I don't follow you. Hirata is the last surviving piece 'X' can use, but we still aren't sure about his relation to 'X'. We should wait patiently for him to reveal his weaknesses, wait for 'X' to start using him. Only when those conditions would be met we should launch an attack on him,"
An input that Kaneda judged to be necessary.

"We are waiting for 'X' to use him because we need to be sure of his relation with 'X', as for his weakness you have just deduced one, haven't you?"

"Karuizawa's past might be a weakness, but if he sees more profit in sacrificing it then won't he do that in order to defeat you?"

"While Hirata lacks that spirit for such sacrifices, it won't be out of the question for him to do that once the calamity falls upon him."

I agreed with Kaneda while highlighting another possibility.

"There won't be enough profit or grave danger that would make him resort to such measures." I added.

"I see."

Dealing with Hirata during a special exam will be a hasty move, nevertheless, if what he said today is true, then it will be my last step to unravel 'X'.

Both of us quietly strolled out of the grounds, the next place I wanted to visit was the proposed site for tonight's meeting.

"I am already tired from walking through this course every morning, you don't plan on doing it again do you?" Kaneda asked nervously.

"Heh, nah. Just shut up and walk."
The sun had already set, the forest grew dim, going through it was the path we travelled every morning. We marched around for a few minutes, and soon the danger sign was visible to me.

There were no cameras monitoring us, the course was available for students all time round. Naturally no one wanted to use it after already walking eighteen kilometres every morning.

"This place seems to be a safe one, it's around four kilometres from the starting point."
On the roadside, I spotted a small rock. Taking it into my hands, I advanced further into the course. After travelling for another ten minutes, I put down the rock again.

"Remember this," I stirred the four eyes, it appears he is having a hard time.

"Uh, sure."
On my way back I placed another stone on the path, it was placed one kilometre away from the sign board.

"Ryuuen-shi, I think I need to use the restroom."
"Stop fretting like a child. We're heading towards the restroom."

Night had fallen, I should better return before dinner. I don't want people to come looking for me anyways.

Under the open sky, the groups gathered. I took my dinner and sat on the table hijacked by Ishizaki.

"Oi, Ishizaki."

"Yes, Ryuuen-san?"
"Bring Komiya and Kondou to my table, I need to have a talk with them,"

"Right away, Ryuuen-san,"
Kaneda and Albert sat beside me, eating their hard earned dinner.

"Kaneda, once you're done eating, you're going to walk into the forest again with Komiya and Kondou."
"Again? But why?" He tried his best to hide the frustration in his voice.
"Show them the two rocks I have placed today, make sure they remember the location. Once you're done report back to me alongside those two,"
"Alright, Ryuuen-shi." It will be an arduous journey for four glasses, but he doesn't have any need to conserve his stamina anyways.

"Ryuuen-san, I got them here."
Ishizaki squeaked, followed by Komiya and Kondou.

"Go with Kaneda, he has something to show you,"
"Uh, sure."
"Okay"

Once the dinner and bath was over I returned to my room, seeing that the group members were all present, I turned back to take a detour. Albert quietly followed me around.

There were still two hours left before the meeting and an hour before lights out. The group I wanted to visit was a rather interesting one, out of all the small groups four were under the direct command of class leaders. However, one of them was made out of leftovers.

Naturally it wasn't made up of useless baboons, every class composed that group together, very carefully; in order to ensure that it doesn't end up falling below average.

As I stood outside the gate I heard the sounds of chattering, it seemed like they were getting along alright.

Knock

I stood silently after the first knock, and within a few moments Sonoda opened the gate.

"Ryuuen-san. Please come in."

The pall fell over their brisk conversation, invasion of their personal space was sensed by all the individuals as my prying eyes fell on them.

"Tch," One guy dared click his tongue.

"Heh," I looked at Tokito, amused by his irrelevant defiance.

"Yo, Ryuuen."

"So you were left out during the picking, huh?"
"Meh, I volunteered to be out of the class leader's business." The guy had long blonde hair tied into a ponytail, wearing a sly smile.

"Sounds like a sorry excuse,"

"Your sobbing about 'X' sounded the same to my ears until today."
"Aren't you interested in who it might be?"

"Who isn't? We were talking about the same topic until you hijacked that convo."
"How amusing, I will bury 'X' soon."
"Fufu, that's the Ryuuen Kakeru I know. Say, how about we take a stroll outside?"
There are many things this fox can't say in front of everyone else, I had been thinking of meeting him up tonight.

"Not now, maybe an hour later,"
"Sure thing."
There wasn't any other work left in this room, the next room I planned on visiting was that of my dear friend Kanzaki. That guy has been indecisive in choosing sides till now.

The end of the test was fast approaching, tomorrow will be the sixth day. Thus, most of the students slept earlier in order to preserve their stamina.

Knock Knock

Creak

"What do you want this late at night, Ryuuen?" Kanzaki asked, he wore a weary yet alerted look.

"Tired aren't we? Night is still young."

Chapter- 18

Chapter- 18

(Hirata's POV)

"Serve yourself, the dinner time won't be extended for anyone."
The boys from all school years gathered around. Even though the hard earned meal was there in front of me, my mind was preoccupied.

Sacrifice was the most I could amount to, but I was never given the chance to do so. To protect someone, sacrifice of others was demanded from me. That's what I am going to do, in order to protect Karuizawa.

Which one of the two will you choose?

The ghastly voice in my head was back... at my darkest times, I could hear Sugimura speaking.

My heartbeat picked up speed, the anticipation of the event I had planned was too much to bear.

"Here, have this." Akito handed me a glass of water.

Without saying anything, I gulped it down. Trying to find calm in the cold water. Akito wasn't breaking down in a situation like this, though at the same time he didn't get the whole picture so his lack of nervousness was understandable.

The dull eyes on the lifeless boy that used to accompany us, the eyes now seemed like an abyss. Ayanokouji Kiyotaka had been behind this all the time. It wasn't hard to trace; I had my doubts about him. Yet, the realisation makes me uneasy.

If he wanted to stay hidden, he could've. Did I find him first, or was I found out?

Are you afraid? You should be, the two you're going to deal with would tear you apart.

I shook my head. Getting myself torn apart was the last thing I feared. What I truly feared was that my sacrifice would be for naught.

I looked at the empty seat on my left. Sudou was supposed to be with us, yet he was nowhere to be seen.

"Eat up, our performance will fall if you don't." Akito returned with another plate full of food. His appetite can match that of a horse.

"Yeah, I guess I will." I picked up a spoonful of soup.

"Hey, Ayanokouji. Any news?"

He was right behind me. Before I could see him, I felt him. I can imagine his indifferent face. Does he enjoy it? He could've protected himself by other means, why have things become like this?
"I will take a seat, if you don't mind." Ayanokouji sat down beside me, accompanied by Sudou who sat against me.

"Man I'm starving, these guys have been feeding me such bland stuff lately." Sudou complained, yet ate his food without any signs of reluctance.

"Hirata," Ayanokouji called me out. I looked at him from the corner of my eye, he did the same.

"Akito told me you wanted to discuss something with me. What's the matter?"

"I was sure to mention our meeting would take place in a rather secluded place." I turned towards him, looking directly into his eyes.

They appeared harmless, yet interested.

"That's true, however, I have a premonition," He took a pause.

He's catching up to you, Hirata. Be fast.

I stayed silent, waiting for him to speak. Akito and Sudou simmered down with their food as well. While eating they paid close attention to the conversation.

"From the beginning my condition has been to stay out of direct confrontations. If you can tell me the contents of this meeting beforehand, I would join you."

Yes, this has been your condition. After all, the last thing you wanted was to be unmasked. Thus, avoiding conflicts from miles away.

It was an indirect way to say, 'I won't be there unless you tell me what's going on.'

"Hmm, I have planned a meeting with Ryuuen tonight." Any further silence on the matter would make him suspicious.

"Where's the meeting supposed to take place?"

"Near the warning sign situated on the path which we walk daily."

"That's a rather dangerous place to be at night. Why choose that place?"

"According to how the meeting goes, it would be better to hold the meeting there,"

"..." Ayanokouji chewed his food calmly. He showed no signs of nervousness.

"What are you going to do exactly?" He pitched his next question.
"The threat of expulsion looms over Karuizawa as we speak. I intend to eliminate the possibility of Ryuuen eliminating her," I spoke directly. It was the truth, yet I felt like I was betraying someone.

"Wait, Ichinose had just dealt with that, right? Karuizawa should be safe now." Akito intervened.

"What makes you think that?"

"The deal guaranteed Manabe's safety in future. Ryuuen must've lost the need to rush things in this exam, right?"
"The deal was just an appeal to Ryuuen's mercy. Now it is in his hand if he wants to keep it or not. Manabe would be more useful if she eliminated Karuizawa, which won't be an option after the special exam ends. After that, all she can do would tarnish her reputation at most. Expulsion won't be a threat for Karuizawa anymore."

I turned towards Ayanokouji. He nodded at me slightly, showing his agreement to my deductions.

"So, Ryuuen will expel Karuizawa unless we do something?" Akito asked, catching on to the situation on hand.

"Yes."
"Would you mind telling me the details of the plan?" Ayanokouji asked, not missing a chance of eating.

"I haven't told anyone about this, I would like to keep it that way." I dodged the question.

"I won't demand those details, as long as I am not involved in direct confrontation."
"Stay assured, you won't be involved in it,"
"Then let me ask you one last thing." I felt uneasiness from the way he was interrogating me. He didn't dig all the details. The randomness was truly troublesome.
"Oi, Ayanokouji, aren't you being too naggy today?" Sudou asked with a mouthful of food.

"It's alright, Sudou. We need to be confident in our roles in this situation for this to work out." I calmed him down.

"Go ahead, Ayanokouji."
"Tell me, do you think you can stop Ryuuen from expelling Karuizawa?" He left his food and turned towards me. I had his full attention which wasn't a good thing.

"Yes. I am sure of it."

We stared at each other for a few moments.

"I assume you will apply diplomatic pressure."

"Hmm, that's the strategy."

"That puts me at ease."
"I will give you more details of the situation once we meet there."
Done with his food, Ayanokouji left the table silently.

"That marks the end of your dinner time. Start moving towards your room once you dispose off the plates."

Done with our dinners, we returned to our respective rooms. I didn't eat properly, so I decided to rest myself a little.

"Hey, Hirata, you won't go for a bath?"

"Nah, you guys go ahead. I will take a nap."
The room was empty soon enough. Silence engulfed it. Just thinking about the possibility of a fight breaking out tonight made me feel a rush through my body.

"I can't sleep like this."

I had no other choice but to struggle alone with my turmoil. Perhaps it would've been better if I took a bath after all.

Time passed by, each second felt longer and longer. Soon my groupmates returned from the bath, refreshed and relaxed. The end of this special test was nearing upon us. We need to perform our best in order to succeed. The results heavily depend on our seniors' performance, but that's no reason to let loose.

Ishizaki, Kondou, and Komiya in particular seemed to be excited. While other people simmered down into their beds, those three left the room.

The light went off, and gradually other students fell asleep.

Should I gather more people? Ryuuen himself won't have many people he could trust to that extent. On top of that I can't put anymore of my classmates in danger just to rescue one.

"I guess we should leave as well." Akito hanged himself down the bunked bed.

"It's time. You get Sudou."
"Are you sure you want to involve him in this?"
"As much as I don't want to, we will need him."

Akito sighed deeply, and climbed down the bed silently.

I propped myself up and wore my shoes. Exiting the room first, I waited outside for those two.

"That makes all of us?" Sudou said, rubbing his eyes.

"Ayanokouji should be on his way too."

As our company approached the woods, I saw Ayanokouji already present at the scene. He stood alone. He was a punctual guy. In the past few months we had had several meetings, yet he didn't fail to show up in any of them.

Once reunited with him, he gave a slight nod.

"This meeting might go south. Ayanokouji, you hide in the forest. Whatever happens, don't come out. You will be our only witness in that case."
"A person from our class would make a low quality witness. If you are afraid that it can devolve into a fist fight shouldn't you get a better witness?"
You're right, but I don't want the contents of this matter to leak to anyone at the same time. On top of that, if things go my way, then a witness would only be a hindrance.

Thus, as long as you're the witness, neither of us would act in opposition to the other, no matter the result.

"I can't trust many people in this matter, Ayanokouji. You're the only one I am confident that can run away if in danger."

"I see." He said simply.

"This certainly sounds dangerous," Akito said as we advanced into the jungle. Before entering I had made sure no one saw us.

The low visibility slowed us down. Fortunately, we weren't following a pathless road, thus, the danger of getting lost was non-existent.

After walking for a few minutes, I spotted the danger sign. It said 'WILD BOARS AHEAD'.

"That's our meeting point. We're here a little early."
"That's convenient, I will hide in the forest." Ayanokouji turned his back towards us.

"Ayanokouji." I stopped him before he left.

"Remember: no matter what happens, don't show up here. If possible, stay at a little distance. I am sure Ryuuen will scourge the area before taking action."

He turned his head slightly at my words, looking at me from behind his shoulder. Silently acknowledging my advice, he disappeared between the tall trees. I didn't want him to listen to my conversation at any cost.

It was a clear night, thus, moonlight was our only source of light. Understanding the fact that I will have to wait a long time for Ryuuen, I asked the other two to sit down.

From the night forest of a mountain, I had expected a pleasant surrounding. However, it felt suffocating. I've read that trees respire at night, which makes it ill advised for humans to go near it.

I wonder how Ayanokouji is managing it inside the forest, that there was another possibility of him running and abandoning us.

Sudou and Akito chatted away their time. Those two were also tensed up by now. At the very least, they had formed a good friendship over the past few days.

Occasionally a cool breeze of refreshing wind would brush by us, providing us relief from the strangling air in the forest. The leaves rustled with happiness. Last time I was in nature's lap, we were in the middle of another special test.

Now that I think about it, Ichinose told me she was the leader. But I have a lingering feeling Ayanokouji has been involved in that as well. Did he rally Ichinose into suggesting him as the leader as well? Trying to grasp his influence was frustrating. It was like measuring the depth of an ocean.

After an hour or so, I heard footsteps approaching us. It seems the wait is finally over.

"Hirata."
"Ryuuen."

We stood face to face. Akito and Sudou joined me in a heartbeat.
"You've said some very interesting things earlier today. Don't disappoint me now." In the dim moonlight, I can see a ghost of a smile in his expression.

Ryuuen was accompanied by Kaneda. Only Kaneda? Were my predictions wrong?

No, he definitely is planning something. There's simply no way Ryuuen won't prey on this opportunity.

"I meant all of what I said."
"Kukuku, how amusing. After the three girls sacrificed so much to protect the identity of 'X'."
"Those sacrifices were all in vain. You aren't going to leave Karuizawa even after that, are you?"
"Hehe, you're right. I would've targeted Ichinose instead if I had the evidence myself. Manabe would've died taking out Ichinose. But, that's not possible. All she will amount to will be Karuizawa."
Had Ryuuen had the evidence against him, he would've attacked Manabe himself with it and framed 'X'. Once that happened Ichinose would've had to get expelled. Fortunately, that wasn't the case.

However, unfortunately, he plans on taking out Karuizawa now.

"Tell me, Ryuuen. You've crushed all the pawns of 'X', yet you weren't able to smoke him out. Now that you've made an open announcement of your hunt, don't you think 'X' will just hide forever?"

"Well said. It would be anticlimactic, but the possibility is high. Never had I expected three bitches to be that loyal to anyone. They'll die rather than sell him out."
Tch, why do I feel angry now at all times?

It was far too ignorant of me to believe Karuizawa naively, I thought we had grown closer, that I was finally able to protect her. Nevertheless, in the end, she was simply reporting my actions to Ayanokouji. To think those two have a bond so strong that Karuizawa would go so far to sacrifice herself for him. Or did he threaten her? No, there is no threat bigger than expulsion in our student life.

Shaking off those thoughts, I regained my composure.

"Your adequate understanding of your positions helps me a lot."
"Just when I thought I had lost the trail of 'X' you showed up."
"What do you mean? We don't have any leads suggesting Hirata is connected to 'X'." Kaneda interfered with our conversation.

"It seems that even 'X' can't protect his anonymity forever, especially from the people working for him."
Kaneda was perplexed. The silence of the intellectual was enough to convey that.

"I will give you 'X''s identity. You must not expel Karuizawa in this given exam."
What I said, flabbergasted the individuals, except me and Ryuuen.

"Hirata, you know who's 'X'?!" Sudou, who was having a hard time focusing and containing himself, erupted.

We ignored him. Akito calmed him down. Last thing I want is for Sudou to spoil this deal.

Ichinose's deal wasn't complete till now. She wanted to protect 'X' as well as Karuizawa. Thus, she sacrificed herself.

However, I wasn't that naive. A necessary sacrifice must be made in order to protect Karuizawa.

"Kukuku. Very well, tell me 'X'. I guarantee Karuizawa's safety."

"Do you take me for a fool? If I give you the answer now, then there is nothing that binds you to keeping your promise."
"What are you getting at?" Ryuuen was ready to have his answer. Unfortunately, I can't give it to him right now.

"I will hand you 'X' after this exam ends. Only when I am sure that Karuizawa is safe will I keep my end of the deal."
"Hehe, you aren't that foolish after all. I used to think you were just a sycophant."

"I don't care about what you think. If the deal is done, then I am leaving."
"How do I know for sure that you know 'X'?"

"On the island you got the wrong name of leader, right? Why do you think so?"
On hearing my words, Ryuuen paused for a moment. Smile crept up his face, a disturbing one.

"That still doesn't prove anything."
"I see, I thought you were smarter."

"..."
"On the cruise ship, you mailed Karuizawa with an anonymous account. That was the place where it all began. I was there, hiding with Horikita behind the emergency exit."

Ryuuen just kept smiling, showing no signs of disagreement.

"Before I continue, I want to know: why did you even go to such lengths?"

"You're sharing some good stuff with me. It would be disappointing if I didn't do the same, right? I had obtained the names of five of the VIPs around that time. I saw a pattern, one that no one else could see. To confirm that pattern, I needed to be sure. Karuizawa fit into it. And at the same time I was reported about Manabe and her friends flirting with your girlfriend."

I recalled the pattern Horikita had revealed to me earlier, the pattern that accurately predicted all the VIPs. To think that Karuizawa's VIP status was never threatened in the first place, to think it was all a bluff.

The disgusting grin on Ryuuen's face grew even more unbearable to me.

"So you took the opportunity to set it all up, thus ensuring the VIP pattern and crushing Karuizawa at the same time."
"Well said. Now, continue your story."
"Karuizawa contacted me, I was there when all of it took place."
"What a benevolent boyfriend you're, aren't you? Snivelling behind the doors as girls play around with your lover." Ryūen said, voice laced with mocking amusement.

"Do you think I would do that? Ichinose and Horikita stopped me from interfering. Both were commanded by 'X' to restrain me."
Ryuuen nodded his head slightly. He was now convinced that I have seen 'X' in action. Ayanokouji was doing all of that to obtain evidence. Later, I was told it was deleted in exchange for our VIPs' security. To think he managed to gather his own set of evidence and use it to this extent. That guy might be evil, but he is surely resourceful.

I abstained from giving any further information. If Ryuuen deduces the identity of 'X' from the hints I pass on, then it will be the end for all of us.

Clap Clap Clap Clap

The sound of his loud claps resonated around the forest.

"I'm convinced that you know 'X'."

.

.

"However—"

.

.

"What guarantees that you aren't the last pawn sent by 'X' in order to buy Karuizawa some time?"

.

.
"What guarantees that I won't beat the name of 'X' out of you right here, right now?"

Two students emerged from the forest, each from a different side of the path. The claps weren't a praise for my witty plan. They were a signal to Albert and Ishizaki.

"We've checked around the area, there's no one around here." Ishizaki conformed.

Ryuuen's predatory eyes looked at Albert next. He nodded, gesturing his approval. From the way which Albert entered, was the place Ayanokouji was hiding.

The most I could've done is done. Out of all things, Karuizawa was safe. Ryuuen won't get the name out of me before this exam ends. Yet, he can't break his end of the deal. That would mean to lose 'X' forever.

I can't report this either if I wanted Karuizawa and her past safe. It might be a hopeless crusade, but the least I could do was to take on the danger placed on Karuizawa.

When faced with a stalemate, Ryuuen is bound to resort to violence.

Sigh

That coward ran away, after all. Playing all cool moves with girls, and running away when men start fighting. Pathetic.

No point in antagonising him. He did what he must. Now I have no witnesses... well, witnesses would spoil it all, after all. I apologised to Akito and Sudou in my head. They're going to be caught in this fight as well.

Why do you fight? Just run away like you always have.

While Ryuuen enjoyed every moment of it, I can feel my expression being grim. The voice in my head, it was painful to hear it again.

"Komiya and Kondou are guarding both the ways. They're appointed on the outposts you installed earlier." The last one to speak was Kaneda.

"Now, Hirata. Show me what you can do." Ryuuen said, spreading his hands wide.

"I knew it would turn out like this." Akito lamented on this situation. His premonition was accurate.

"Hehe, I have been itching to beat Ishizaki for real ever since." He didn't lack the understanding of the situation. Rather, Sudou learnt his lesson and now was excited to teach it back.

Crack

I cracked the knuckle of my index finger.

"Certainly." My foot stamped down. Hard. Men get arrested, but then, what if they can't? They—the dogs—get put down.

Chapter - 19

Chapter -19

(Ayanokouji's POV)

Rescue

"Remember: no matter what happens, don't show up here. If possible, stay at a little distance. I am sure Ryuuen will scourge the area before taking action." As I was leaving Hirata gave his last piece of advice.

As much as he tried to conceal his intentions, there aren't many ways to apply diplomatic pressure on a person like Ryuuen.

Right now, the only thing that can actually beg the mercy of Ryuuen isn't Manabe's safety. That was never his concern, Ryuuen will trade the life of a person if it results in profit.

Thus it's useless to appeal to Ryuuen's mercy; his self interest has a better chance of stopping him from harming Karuizawa.

Out of the handful of methods by which Hirata can appeal to Ryuuen's self interest, one of them would be to offer up the identity of 'X'.

The profit that Ryuuen seeks was pretty evident by his words in the cafeteria today. In parallel to those words, Hirata realised my identity as 'X'.

Thus, I had a premonition.

After I was out of earshot, I sat down on the hard ground. Even though it's the second special exam that deals with nature, I haven't gotten used to it. For the majority of my life I've been away from the lap of nature.

Time passed by, and after a few minutes I heard faint sounds of footsteps approaching me. They were coming from the jungle. I climbed up the nearby tree in order to stay out of sight. Unlike on the path we walk daily, the moonlight barely reached inside the forest.

Eventually, the owner of the sound came into sight, he was walking cautiously; avoiding any noise that would bring attention to his existence.

In the dim light it was hard to tell who it was, but the tall build reminds me of someone from Class C. Ryuuen was nowhere in my sight, the lone student cautiously made his way through the woods,
Without getting caught by Hirata who was now sitting down, waiting patiently for Ryuuen.

"Outposts..." I mumbled to myself.

Sitting on the tree, I pondered if I should get down or wait here. No one would spot me here, though it's quite uncomfortable to sit in this posture for long.

Sigh

After another thirty minutes or so, Ryuuen was there at last. Without making any sounds I jumped onto the next tree, closing my distance with the assembly.

Hirata offered 'X's identity in exchange for Karuizawa's safety in this exam. However, he missed the fact that if Ryuuen catches onto his desperation to save Karuizawa, then he will exploit it immediately.

Deals like those made by Hirata or Ichinose are still in the end an appeal, one to Ryuuen's self interest, while other to his mercy.

These methods would work effectively against most people, but Ryuuen is a different breed. In order to subdue him, appeals are useless; this situation demands a different set of tactics.

I wish I could've found someone in my class to take on Ryuuen. However, even with Hirata, Horikita, and Ichinose combined, they'll never outsmart Ryuuen the way things are progressing.

The difference isn't in their abilities, but rather their approach. The three of them are quite adherent to the school rules. Instinctively, they discard any approach that involves going against the rules.

Nevertheless, Hirata's different from Horikita and Ichinose.

Ryuuen was accompanied only by Kaneda, which was odd in itself. It was no surprise when I spotted Albert going through the forest below me, scanning the area thoroughly. Ensuring no one was present.

I considered the prospect of getting caught by Albert as an eavesdropper, but discarded the thought later. I want to witness Hirata's actions in my absence — would he still protect 'X' once he loses him as the witness?

Clap Clap Clap Clap

On hearing the clapping sounds, Albert immediately stopped his search and walked towards the path.

"I'm convinced that you know 'X'.".
"However—".
"What guarantees that you aren't the last pawn sent by 'X' in order to buy Karuizawa some time?".
"What guarantees that I won't beat the name of 'X' out of you right here, right now?"

Ishizaki emerged from the other side of the path, while Albert made his way from below me.

"Komiya and Kondou are guarding both ways. They're appointed on the outposts you installed earlier." Kaneda reported. I saw only one of them, so perhaps the other one took a different route.

"Now, Hirata. Show me what you can do." Ryuuen said, spreading his hands wide.

"Certainly." Hirata stomped on the ground.

"Sudou, Akito. You guys run away, make sure you don't get caught." Hirata ordered firmly.

"I'm not leaving you alone with Ryuuen, he's been infamous for mauling decoys."

"Hehe, seems like I've an old friend of mine here."

Sudou lowered his stance, not sure if he should run away or not. Kaneda silently observed the scene from a distance with his hands folded.

"Man... do I do..." I caught a few words of Sudou talking to himself. His confusion was evident from his actions.

"You have your chance to run away too, Hirata. I've zero interest in a man who shows his back when challenged with a fight." Ryuuen taunted.

Hirata didn't deliver a verbal answer to Ryuuen's provocation. He just marched forward.

"This is for that day, Hirataaa!" Ishizaki charged at Hirata. How interesting. It seems they've a past score to settle.

Bam

"Urghh!"

However, before Ishizaki could reach Hirata, Akito intervened. A powerful kick to his torso stopped him in his tracks.

Seemingly Akito had fighting experience before.

"Sudou! You take on Ishizaki." Akito caught Sudou's lost train of thought and issued further orders in Hirata's stead.

Hirata didn't want Akito and Sudou to get involved in this.

"Akito—"

"Kukuku, distraction kills the game." Before he could command them to leave, Ryuuen engaged him in combat.

The team was rather uncoordinated, but they tried their best.

Akito, leaving the matter of Ishizaki, lashed at Albert. Albert, intercepting the attack, charged into Akito with his shoulder leading the way.

"Ah!"

"Bad boy," Albert said calmly to Akito, who was lying down. Before Albert could catch him again, Akito scrambled to his feet to put some distance between him and Albert. A smart move, the last collision should have been enough for him to grasp the difference in their strengths.

"Tch, this guy's tough."

The next punch Albert threw was successfully dodged. As much as Akito wanted to, closing in would mean instant knockout for him.

On the other hand, Hirata was on the same boat. His footwork and agility far surpassed that of Ryuuen; he had no problem in dodging his attacks.

The strategy here was to tire out Ryuuen, nevertheless, Ryuuen was well versed with such tactics. In the dim moonlight, feints were hard to counter. And feints are particularly effective in cases where the opponent fears you.

The consecutive feints that fooled Hirata were proof of his fear of Ryuuen's attack. As much as he wanted to hide it, some responses are just involuntary.

Thud

"Ishizaki!" Kaneda exclaimed.

A dull slap echoed from Sudou's punch on Ishizaki. The fight had concluded between them: Sudou had put down Ishizaki.

Other parties had a brief pause, and Sudou instantly charged at Ryuuen without a second thought.

"Now take this! You *!"

This was the point where the mess began. Before Sudou could intervene, Ryuuen distanced himself from Hirata. However, Hirata sensed the cautiousness in Ryuuen and closed in.

Both Sudou and Hirata went for the same person, but Albert was unstoppable. Akito tried to stop him, however, he didn't have the means to do so. It would be a risky endeavour to come in Albert's path.

Albert charged at Sudou with his full momentum.

"Ack!" I could hear the faint cry of Sudou as he absorbed the massive impact generated by Albert. For a moment, Hirata was stunned by the sudden intervention.

"You're nothing against my Albert!" Ryuuen exclaimed in joy. He provoked Sudou further, but Sudou was in no condition to give any reaction to such provocations.

Albert mounted Sudou. I couldn't see what was going on, but the way Sudou's legs convulsed in pain, I can conclude he was being, possibly, choked...

Without missing a heartbeat, Akito attacked Albert's exposed back. His kick had a solid force behind it. Nevertheless, Albert absorbed it all.

Akito jumped back, standing with his stance lowered, as if not sure what to do next.

Soon Sudou stopped moving, already unconscious from the blood choke. Albert stood up, picking up his sunglasses in hand.

"Tch, not the glasses."

He tossed the glasses towards Ryuuen.

"Kukuku, Albert's angry... no one escapes him once he loses the glasses." Ryuuen spoke, seemingly from experience.

Hirata launched another punch at Ryuuen, but it was countered with a stronger force. The situation was quickly turning bleak for him. He was worried for his friends, and at the same time, he was afraid of Ryuuen.

Until now Akito had maintained his distance. He was only attacked when he himself closed in. His familiarity to this pattern backfired when Albert suddenly ran at him, striking his head with his extended forearm.

The strike was fast and precise. There was no room for the already tired Akito to dodge it. His head hit the ground, and Akito lost consciousness soon enough.

"Akito!!" Hirata exclaimed.

"Not him, Albert. Hold him down." Before Albert could charge at Hirata, Ryuuen commanded him to pacify Hirata.

Hirata tried to strike Albert, but his fist wasn't trained to punch through Albert's hard muscles.

Sensing the wide gulf in their power he tried to retreat back, but he was caught. Hirata was forced down to his knees under Albert's brute strength.

Ryuuen gestured with his hand to turn him around.

He punched Hirata's solar plexus. The force behind the punch rattled Hirata's bones. These punches won't leave any marks, the pain wasn't on the skin or just the bones.

It was delivered to the diaphragm. A blow like this knocks the air out of a person, making one unable to breathe correctly.

Hirata's face twisted under the immense pain. Yet, he didn't make a sound... or to be precise, he wasn't able to.

As much as he wanted, he couldn't scream. By the time his lungs would fill with air again, Ryuuen would deliver another blow.

You can train all you want, but solar plexus is something you can't train to take damage.

A smile stretched on his face. It was not a nice smile. "That's nice now. My opinion of you have
rose, this expression is much better than your previous sickening mug of a wannabe-saviour."

As Hirata regained his composure a little, Ryuuen launched his next punch. Hirata closed his eyes, making futile attempts to absorb the impact.

But Ryuuen stopped midway. Hirata was confused. I've witnessed events very similar to this before.

The mind braces itself, predicting the pain before it can even reach the brain. However, the pain doesn't reach it. Involuntarily relief runs through the body.

This was proof that the victim feared the next blow.

Bam

Ryuuen punched him without any warning.

"Ackkk!"

"I can't let this continue," I muttered to myself.

Since Ichinose and Horikita were discredited recently, Hirata is a precious acquaintance at a time like this. Only he possesses what it takes to establish further order.

I must not let Ryuuen break his spirit; I must not let him plant the seed of fear within Hirata if I want my future plans to go smoothly.

"We're different Hirata, your fear spoils the taste."

I jumped off the tree, into the eye of the storm. My legs absorbed the shock of the high fall, the sound was faint, yet, it was enough to catch Ryuuen's attention.

He seeks an end to his search; a challenge.

The adventurous hunt, however, met an abrupt end when Ryuuen caught sight of me: his prey, the 'X'.

--

Chapter- 20 (Hunter vs Hunted)

Chapter- 20

Hunter vs Hunted

Ryuuen's POV

"Ackk!"

The satisfying sound resonated in my ears. As much as I wanted to meet 'X', I didn't want to spoil Hirata.

But now, the situation demands me to crush Hirata so I can find 'X'.

My lips curled with joy. At last I am going to find someone like me. I was so close to finding 'X' during the sports festival, but even Chabashira herself concealed the identity. It feels like the whole world wants to stop me from meeting 'X'.

Thud

A faint sound came from behind me. What? There wasn't supposed to be anyone but us here. I turned behind swiftly, expecting Komiya, who was guarding the outpost in that direction.

Huh?

"What brings you here on such a fine night, Ayanokouji?" I asked the guy standing in front of me. His eyes reflected the moonlight yet they were devoid of any fear.

I will change that soon.

"Hirata brought me here to be a witness to this event."

For a moment I looked at Albert who was supposed to scan the whole area for witnesses. Under my gaze Albert shrugged slightly. Apparently he was oblivious of any such existence present in the forest.

"I see, but now you've foolishly showed up in front of me. It's news to me that you're that dumb."

"Ayanokouji! Why did you show up?! Didn't you run away?!"

"No, in case you failed, I had planned to end this myself," he replied calmly.

An utterly foolish declaration, yet, I couldn't shake off this lingering cautiousness.

Ayanokouji Kiyotaka is one of the prime suspects of being 'X'. So, either he is 'X' or someone working directly under 'X'.

Whichever is the case, it's my win, since he walked into the gallows himself.

"End this? This all won't end until I find and crush 'X'." I warned him.

"There's no need to fret, I am the one you're looking for."

"That's the most foolish line one can say in this situation, he's clearly bluffing Ryuuen-shi," Kaneda said, pushing his glasses up slightly. But, I ignored him.

"Today, what happened in the cafeteria was quite unexpected. That bitch Ichinose is getting hard to control eh?"

Ichinose had made a foolish move earlier today. There's no way 'X' would ever approve of such reckless actions.

"You took advantage of her good nature. By revealing Karuizawa's situation to her you exploited her impulsive decision to confront you. On top of that, you displayed swift adaptation to her response by discrediting the leaders under my control."

Huh?

"You outdid yourself Ryuuen, I will give you that." He added praise.

"What? I revealed Karuizawa's situation to Ichinose? Nothing of that sort happened, Karuizawa herself contacted Ichinose for help." I corrected the imbecile.

"..." He stood silent for a while, face inscrutable, eyes staring.

"So there's another traitor in your party. There's someone else who has disclosed information about your side to Ichinose. And that someone has also lied to you about Karuizawa making contact with Ichinose." His words took another abrupt turn, but despite the abruptness, I felt a seed of doubt germinating within me.

— Shiina Hiyori

"Don't listen to him, Ryuuen-shi, he's just trying to plant distrust within us."

"I have no such intentions. There's nothing to gain by planting any more traitors in your lot. The threat of Karuizawa's expulsion was a surprise to Karuizawa, but was well met by Ichinose."

He recited his intentions and observations, and what he said made sense. However, I had another explanation for Ichinose's steadfast response.

"The deal might be a desperate measure taken to avoid the worst, yet, risking your own expulsion isn't something you do on an impulse. It's unlikely Ichinose thought of that counter on the spot."

That's true, my assumption was that 'X' was the one who told Ichinose about the rest of the danger. Now that another angle to the picture is revealed, a clearer picture is forming in my head.

"Tch." I unconsciously clicked my tongue on the realisation as I played today's events in my head. I thought I had seen all there was to it, but it seems there was more depth to it.

Depth that only he had seen, the one standing in front of me — 'X'.

"Uhhh, that hurt." I could see Ishizaki waking up slowly.

Beside him, Akito had gained consciousness as well. He's a tough nut. Rather than interrupting our talk, he quietly heard us.

"Akito." Ayanokouji shifted his attention from me.

"Take away Sudou. Apply some ice or something on him, and don't report the incident anywhere." His voice was commanding.

"Ayanokouji...I can't leave—"

"I guarantee you Hirata's safety. Don't worry about that."

"Now that's a big promise. I can't let them leave, you see."

No way I'm going to trust these guys with 'not calling a witness'.

Even though I exposed him in front of other classmates, Ayanokouji stood in front of me with his indifferent expression.

Hirata has lost: the one standing in front of me is the real 'X'. Now, Hirata has nothing in his hands to keep Karuizawa safe.

"You've made a grave error. In order to engage in violent activity during special exams, you prepared a secluded area to carry out your hunt." He declared as he signalled Akito to leave.

"That's true, but there will be no evidence left behind of whatever happens here." I admitted proudly.

"And that's what will lead to your downfall."

"Huh?"

It took me a second as the realisation dawned upon me. He didn't show up here just to run away, after all.

I've prepared this place to carry out atrocious actions. Is that his advantage...?

"There's no need to stop Akito," I muttered.

—--

(Ayanokouji's POV)

Ryuuen saw the direction my words pointed towards, so he let Akito pass with Sudou.

My entry into this scene was a complete surprise to him. After making so many sacrifices, he didn't expect 'X' to show up in a secluded spot engineered specifically in his favour.

"Heh heh heh, now this is what I've been looking forward to... That one last turn of tables, to challenge me in my own game?" Ryuuen said, clutching his bangs.

"You're crazy, but walking into a fight like this alone... That's just stupid." Ryuuen signalled Albert to attack me.

Ishizaki, on other hand, was still a little lost on the developments he saw.

Leaving Hirata behind, Albert rushed towards me. Under the dim moonlight I could barely see the colour of his iris.

I took his attack head on, loosening my body.

Thud

The hit was near my sternum. The blow didn't have the weight behind it in line with my expectations, although, it was enough to throw me back. It seems, Albert held back against me.

"Ayanokouji!" Hirata yelled as I fell on the ground. If he keeps this up, he's going to attract a witness soon.

"Kukuku. All that talk," Ryuuen said, voice dropping in disappointment, "and he got knocked out in one punch by my Albert." He walked with measured quiet steps towards me. Perhaps he planned to torment me in a similar way he used on Hirata.

I got up slowly, filled with disappointment.

Ryuuen stopped in his tracks, perhaps due to seeing me standing unscathed, a shadow of caution passing over his face.

"Huh? Ayanokouji, stay down man, just admit defeat." Ishizaki gave me his heartfelt advice.

As I was looking at him, from the corner of my eye I saw Albert closing in on me again.

"ESHH" Albert exhaled air as he put all the force behind his next punch. But, I dodged it at the last moment.

Regaining his balance, Albert threw the next punch, and then another. Clenched knuckles thundered upon me to no avail; not one landed on me.

Once I had registered the timing of his punches, I launched my counter attack.

ZAAP!!

Flowing through between his punches, my fist rammed on firm, solid muscles. The blow didn't knock him out, and that didn't surprise me, although, against his will, Albert fell on his knees, staggering.

"Albert!!" Kaneda exclaimed.

In my peripheral vision I caught Ishizaki running towards me. Understanding the emergency of the situation, he might have decided to go all out. "You bastard!"

I distanced myself from the still struggling Albert. Grappling was one thing I didn't want to be engaged in during a fight against multiple opponents.

In White Room, I was once taught Silat under a trainer from the Cimande school of Silat.

I had learnt the art of dealing with multiple opponents. In contrast to the 'hard' movements of Muay Thai, the most popular Southeast Asian martial art, Silat's movements, that I learnt, were 'soft'.

Cimande assumed a minimum of three opponents; but, masters would go against as many as twelve at once. I began to learn how to fight with this style from a seated position. Only after mastering it was I taught footwork. The heavy use of elbows demanded a lot of skill to apply this style.

I deflected Ishizaki's strike with my elbow. His speed and power were nothing to write home about. Despite that, Ishizaki kept on with his incessant rampage of hits; wild, all without any form or technique. And I parried all of them using my elbows.

Behind him, Albert's looming figure was getting back on legs. Ryuuen was missing from his spot as well; so, before deflecting Ishizaki's next attack, I scanned the surroundings.

A flicker of shadow closed in from behind me.

"Ayanokouji! Behind you!" Hirata yelled again...

I kicked off the ground, cutting sideways out of a possible pincer movement by Ryuuen and Ishizaki.

"Heh, where did you learn that stuff from? Those instincts are of someone who's grown up fighting, like myself." Ryuuen added more praise, more to himself than to me.

Diligence, hard work, talent — these medals are often rendered useless when it comes to a real brawl. One can train martial arts under those rules for their whole life, yet never get used to brawls.

Only when you're surrounded with opponents harbouring killing intent will you learn the correct timing. The hike of adrenaline instills lessons impossible to be learnt in a legal, simulated arena. That's the instinct Ryuuen is talking about.

Ryuuen and Ishizaki kept their distance from me, and Albert joined them as well. It was a three versus one.

"Raaa!! Ayanokouji!" Ishizaki rushed at me bellowing. The way Ryuuen and Albert followed him made it clear he was just a decoy.

Once again I started deflecting the attacks using my elbows. Elbow strikes have a shorter range compared to punches and kicks; it irritates the enemy to repeatedly fail in their strikes by an inch when facing me.

Their attacks were uncoordinated, clearly showing the lack of experience in fighting as a team.

"What the f* is this?! Hah!" Ishizaki's voice was filled with irritation. Out of the three opponents I was fighting, he was the one who launched useless attacks with the highest frequency. Consequently, fatigue caught up with him rapidly.

Swiftly, I stepped forward with my left leg; involuntarily, Ishizaki flinched, startled at the jarring shift of tactics.

Zaap!

"Gah!" Ishizaki was jerked out of balance, as I snapped out a cross elbow strike at his neck, knocking him out instantly.

Till now Ryuuen and Albert were striking me without any reservations. However, after witnessing the sudden development, Albert stepped back cautiously.

Ryuuen charged ahead heedless, devoid of even a speck of fear. He must have sensed the gulf between our abilities. Still, the crazed smile, the glint in his eye — they didn't diminish, but only shot up further; the spark blazing.

"This is fun, Ayanokouji." A low resonating laugh spilled out along with his savage strikes.

"You got anything besides elbows, no? Give me more than this. More!" He complained as if I were incompetent, even with not a single attack of his reaching me.

Finally regaining his composure, Albert tagged with Ryuuen. They switched places as Ryuuen backed off to catch his breath.

"I don't have much time left now..."

Before Albert could strike, I unleashed my elbow uppercut at his jaw; the concussion threw him off balance. But before he could fall, I released a barrage of elbow strikes.

They didn't make much sound; they didn't even appear lethal. However, the deceptively benign and 'soft' movements delivered significant damage.

"Urgh." Albert crumpled on his knees. His hulking mass was wavering, and this time, I bashed a hammering blow on his nape to make certain that he was down for the count.

At last I got a moment of rest.

Hirata and Kaneda were stupefied by the unforeseen developments. And now, it was just between me and Ryuuen.

"Kukuku, why don't you show off your skills more often?" Ryuuen tried to buy some time by talking.

"I've my reasons." I marched forward. As much as he wanted to, Ryuuen's pride won't allow him to step back.

"You surely have some nerve with that condescension." He jabbed at my face; it was a fast one, and he surpassed Ishizaki in both speed and power by far.

"Huh?" In a heartbeat, I seized his wrist in a vice grip. Trapped in my firm grasp, Ryuuen's smile vanished, shifting to a frown.

I balled my opposite hand into a fist, and a powerful blow descended on Ryuuen's solar plexus.

"Gah!" he cried. His eyes widened, though, the sharp glint in his eye persisted; the ghost of a smile touched his lips again.

Bam!

.

.

Bam!

.

.

Bam!

Only the sounds of my blows were audible. As much as he wanted to scream in pain, Ryuuen couldn't do that.

I gave him a moment of rest so that he could catch his breath.

'Ryuuen-shi!" Kaneda picked up a rock and rushed at me. However, before he could reach me, Hirata kicked him out of the way.

Even though surprise was blaringly plastered on his face, he didn't dare interrupt, or even permit any interruptions by others. A sliver of praise arose in my mind for that, but only briefly.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Ryuuen jerked the hand clamped down under my grip with increased strength. It slipped a little, but I caught it again. Still, he gained a bit of free space.

Since we were in close quarters, he swiftly launched a kick at my groin. I shifted my weight to another leg and dodged the kick.

"Just cuz you fight good doesn't mean you can look away in a fight, you can be as tough as you want but you need to be tough inside too." Ryuuen tried to talk his way out. "Even if I lose today, I will come at you again," he added.

"You're free to do so."

The persistence Ryuuen displayed was extraordinary: even after receiving a barrage of blows, he was already scheming his next attack having caught his breath.

However, I must extinguish that flame within him. That is the very reason I decided to clash with him in first place. I could've used a third party witness to frame Ryuuen, but he wouldn't have laid low unless I didn't collide with him head on.

Before his eyes could register it, I launched my next punch.

"Euk!!" I struck his ribs with my fist.

On an impulse, for the first time in this fight — Ryuuen stepped back. He pulled his captive arm with all the force, but to no avail. I gave a strong jerk pulling his whole body towards me. His shifting weight was met by an elbow strike at his face.

Ryuuen's attention was forcibly fixated on his captured arm. He tried to free himself of the suffering.

He could no longer stand on his legs. But I didn't allow him the luxury of falling to his knees. Shifting my grip from his forearm to his bicep, I lifted him up and kept striking, hitting, over and over. A small amount of blood trickled down from Ryuuen's lips.

"Gah!" he cried in agony. At last the smile on his face was vanishing; it must be getting painful to even curl his lips to form one.

For a moment, I stopped, granting Ryuuen momentary reprieve. This situation could be described as nothing but a slaughter. For a second, my gaze flickered sideward, and met Hirata's eyes, eyes brimming with raw terror. Fear had rooted him in place like the gnarled root of a tree.

I will have to deal with him later.

Ryuuen tried to muster up the power to strike. However, standing on his feet already took all the power he had.

I swept at his shaking legs, releasing his arm. Faint relief coloured his face as he fell flat on the ground; free, at last, from my vice-like grip.

He erred, and mistakenly assumed this to be the end of his suffering.

"Heh... not done... are we?" He barely made out those words, when he saw me mounting him. He tried to act like it was nothing, but his voice was gradually losing strength, growing fainter.

I raised my fist again.

"Wai—"

Bam!

"Gah!"

"Guhh—" I shoved my forearm into his open mouth. His eyes widened, but he tried to bite me with his full force.

"Your jaw is open far too widely to produce a bite force," I said, stopping him mid-attempt. "Still, if you keep forcing a bite, then it might break instead." My face slithered close to his.

"If you understand that," I continued, "then blink twice."

He just tried to bite hardly in response.

I pointed my thumb out of my fist while Ryuuen's eyes were fixated on mine. I drove my thumb strongly into his ribs. I made sure not to break into the rib cage however.

Splurt.

Spit drizzled out of his mouth, a bloody mess appearing out of it tumbling. It coated my forearm.

It was all so insignificant. I saw his eyes, and it was there, lurking deep. A very real trickle of dread wormed its way in.

"Mphmmmm"

Ryuuen tried to speak, but—frivolous attempts—he could only lick the skin of my forearm at most.

"Words aren't necessary anymore." Understanding his situation, he breathed in the scarce amount of air I allowed.

Huff

Huff

Huf-

Snap!

I drove my thumb into his ribs once again, making sure I hit a different rib this time. He closed his eyes tightly, frowning, agonising.

I let him recover a little. The lines of his face relaxed a little...

I must not let him pass out right now.

Snap!

"PHMMM!" Muffled sounds escaped his throat. I could feel the saliva dripping out from between his lips, and landing on my forearm.

I probed his lower rib with another thumb. His eyes opened wide at another digit being drove in.

"You see," I whispered, "there are twelve pairs of ribs in you, in each of us... With three of them already tested, there must be around twenty one remaining, right?" I stared deep in his eyes, impassive, head tilted a fraction of degree to a side.

I can't attack the same rib twice or it will break for sure. Thankfully, human body has more ribs to spare.

Snap

I could feel his legs lashing behind my back, writhing. But it was futile. All they could do was strike the ground, and distract his mind, preserve parts of Ryuuen's mind from the digging pain rumbling in his thorax.

Snap

Sweat dripped down his forehead. There was no escaping at this point, Ryuuen. His head rocked, to right, to left; there, I saw it – a tiny, almost unseen, drop of water rolling down his cheek.

I was convinced — the fighting spirit within Ryuuen had been extinguished. I traded my next blow in exchange for Ryuuen's consciousness, thus, putting him out of his suffering.

It's over.

Ever since I decided to take part in inter class battles, a speck of excitement had slithered its way in me; excitement for playing against Ryuuen on his own game. Thus, it was inevitable, we were bound to collide sooner or later. I would have arrived at this moment.

But, now it ends.

As long as he wasn't defeated in his own turf, Ryuuen would always think he had a chance against me. As long as he wasn't cornered and crushed, he would keep hunting me thinking of himself as the hunter. Only when he played the role of a prey would he abandon his reckless course of action.

A brawl in a special exam was never my plan. However, I was offered a chance to crush Ryuuen earlier than I expected. Hirata and Ichinose might've failed in rescuing Karuizawa, but they were successful in deviating the situation to this point.

"Hirata." I turned my face towards him. Even though he was terrified, he kept his composure.

"I understand you harbour hatred against me, but put that aside for now. Right now, Akito needs assistance with Sudou. Go back and help him."

"What will you do with them?" He pointed at the four students lying on the ground.

"You'll know soon, once you're done helping Akito return back here alone. I will wait here to face your wrath."

"Hah. That's not even funny." His head dropped in his hands. "Stop joking . What can I even do to you?" A single eye, filled with fright, creaked open at me.

"Let's not waste time talking. Make sure you don't call any witnesses." I cut the conversation short. I need to talk to Hirata once his mind is clear.

Reluctantly, Hirata left the scene. It has been only a few minutes. Given that Akito is carrying Sudou with him, he wouldn't have reached the outpost in that direction.

"Ugh, where did the rock go..." Kaneda was the first to stand.

"It's no use." On hearing my words he went stiff. Ryuuen's still body lying on the ground caught his attention. "You can relax, the fight is over." I tried to reassure him.

"Wake up others. I will wake up Ryuuen."

I lightly slapped Ryuuen's cheek.

"Tch... you gonna maul me again?" He asked me, trying to smile. Commendable effort, but he was failing.

"No. It's over."

"Heh, I don't think so..." he said. "I'm going to do whatever it takes to take you out. Even if I've to expel myself." What he was pointing towards was for the joint responsibility of this exam.

"I don't recommend that. My performance in this exam will be that of perfection. You'll never be able to take me down with you just because you're the leader and the average of our group falls below. It will only lead to your end." I reprimanded him for his reckless decision.

"Prepared, aren't we?" He huffed. "What'll you do if I expel Karuizawa? If I create fake evidence to expel Ichinose?" An ember still persists in him. It would be applause worthy, but, he tasted fear right here, and continues acting rashly.

"You can do that if you're ready for an all-out-war."

"I don't see a war"—Ryuuen propped himself up—"it will be just me crushing you."

"Ironically, it will be the opposite: I still have evidence against Manabe." A pause. "I've the audio recording of you plotting against Horikita during the sports festival." Another pause. "I've audio recording of Ishizaki clearly mentioning your name in scheming against Sudou." Yet another pause to emphasise what comes next.

"At the end of this path, towards the boy's building, the homeroom teacher of Class D is standing. The Class D students will cross paths with her soon, and, inevitably, you'll return there as well. I can report you for violence to school, and you won't be able to frame me there either."

Hirata's meeting spot with Ryuuen was perfectly engineered according to Ryuuen. It was natural to set up a witness in case I needed to file a case against Ryuuen.

Listening to the numerous ways I held to shield myself, Ryuuen turned silent. His frown deepened further.

"Why won't you crush me then? It's always better to crush the enemies completely than letting them live." Ryuuen's question was justified.

"I want peace. I have no intentions of waging war as long as my identity is safe." I put forth my conditions.

"Heh, no intentions to advance through classes. You just confuse me more and more with your actions."

As much as I expected Ryuuen to lash out, he didn't. Kaneda, Albert, and Ishizaki quietly stood beside him.

"Let's leave my intentions aside. What're you going to do from now onwards?"

"Isn't it obvious?" He scoffed. "My class has suffered a lot because of my methods. Now that they've failed, it's only natural that I take responsibility for all that."

"I had assumed you abandoned morality long ago. It surprises me to see you follow a moral code of your own."

"I'm not like you. I'm a tyrant. I owe my subjects as much as they owe me."

"How do you plan on taking the responsibility then?"

Ryuuen turned towards Kaneda, he planned to answer my question by actions.

"Keep my points, I'm quitting this special exam." Ryuuend declared.

"But Ryuuen-shi, our group average will fall below if you do that!"

"Yeah, so?"

"Don't put it like you don't understand it. You'll be expelled if that happens." Kaneda tried to reason with Ryuuen, but it seems he's already made up his mind.

"Cut the crap, Kaneda, I've got nothing to do in this school now."

"B-But, Ryuuen-san, you can still go on. It's not like Ayanokouji will report the incident or anything." Ishizaki, who was genuinely scared of Ryuuen's expulsion, made futile attempts to stop him.

"Shut up, I am stepping down. Make up some story that you defeated me and step up as the leader. With me gone, Hiyori will help you lead the class in a new light." Ryuuen didn't budge.

"You've confronted 'X' in front of the whole school, " I interrupted. "There's no way to hide this defeat within your own class. No one's going to believe it."

"Tch, did I ask?"

"I am telling you this because the one to take the credit of defeating you is going to be Hirata." I added.

"Meh, do you really think anyone is going to buy that either?"

"No, but even Hirata will be the closest and last lead to 'X'. Everyone will understand that challenging him would mean to incur the wrath of 'X' — the one who took down Ryuuen." Clearly irritated by my scheme, Ryuuen made a disgusted face.

"So you're ready to take on the troubles huh."

"After you proved my existence, it became inevitable."

"You can try making up your own story," I continued. "But history has proven again and again: The words of the victor reigns supreme over the defeated."

"Hmm, whatever. Not that I'm going to stay here anyways."

"Ryuuen-san! Please don't go!" Ishizaki's sorrow was clear. Out of the constrictions society often put on a man, Ishizaki was crying unreservedly.

At this point, Ryuuen just ignored his words. He stood up, ready to walk away.

"I think you'll regret this course of action, Ryuuen. This school has a lot to teach you. You won't grow if you don't stand back up after falling."

"My growth"—he smiled—"has nothing to do with you." It was not a nice smile.

"That's true."

Silently, Ryuuen turned back and started walking away. Other Class D students followed him, all trying to convince Ryuuen against his actions, but their cries fell on deaf ears.

"...I guess, I'll have to wait for Hirata now."

As I took a seat near a tree, a tall student approached the scene from the opposite direction to which Ryuuen left.

Once he was close enough, I recognized him to be Komiya.

"Huh? What're you doing here? Where's Ryuuen-san?" His confusion was understandable.

I pointed in the direction of the boys' building. Komiya, not understanding the situation, ran towards it quietly.

An hour passed after that. Though it might seem Hirata might not return, I was sure he would.

I had said it once before: Hirata and I were racing against each other. A race to unravel the truth behind the other individual. Now that the race has concluded with Hirata being the victor, I must take what's rightfully mine as well.

Chapter- 21

Chapter -21

Hirata's pov

"I will get you some water." Akito put down Sudou who had regained consciousness.

The outdoor kitchen was far from the eyes of other students. There won't be any staff arriving here at this hour of night.

"Uhh, I thought I died there." Sudou held his head. "My head feels light." His tone wasn't complaining, it was sombre.

"It's alright man. You fought valiantly there." Akito consoled him.

"That reminds me, how did you guys escape anyways?" Sudou inquired about the incongruence of the result.

Akito looked at me, leaving the answer to me.

"You should rest for now. I will tell you all about it later." I deviated from the question. Sudou's curiosity wasn't anything to write home about as he lost his interest in the matter.
I sat down, waiting for Sudou to regain his composure.

"Don't you have more important matters to attend to right now?" Akito indirectly pointed towards Ayanokouji who was still in the forest.

His words reminded me of the horror that I witnessed in the forest – those cold eyes, not a hint of hesitation... not a hint of excitement. I felt a shiver run down my spine.

As we were returning, I had told Akito that Ayanokouji acted as a decoy for me to get away midfight. His anxiety for Ayanokouji's safety was understandable since he knew Ryuuen mangled decoys.

However, little did he know... that once he was gone, the hunter was hunted...

"It's alright. I will leave for that once you and Sudou return to your room," I replied.

After a few minutes Sudou propped himself up, and I stood up to support him. Slowly he stood up. His legs were a little shaky but he persevered through it.

"You can walk?" I asked.

"Yeah... kinda."

"Guys, I'm really sorry to put you two in this situation." I apologised sincerely.

"Not this now, Hirata." Akito stopped me midway. "People make mistakes. The one we made against Ryuuen was a fatal one... It's a blessing you made it out safely. You should go back now."

"Y-yeah, you guys go ahead.. I need to check on something." Nervousness crept into me just by the mere thought of facing him again.
"Huh? You wanna take a piss or something?" A hint of irritation was evident in Sudou's question.

"Yeah, see you guys later."
—--

Ayanokouji's POV

Crack

The small twig I was using to draw on the ground broke down.

Sigh

The long wait ended as I saw a shadow emerge from the forest. As the distance between us closed, Hirata's figure became more apparent.

"Did you really think I would come?" His cautious yet nervous voice broke the silence.

"Asking that after you're here is foolish."

"..."
"What do you want?"

"A small talk." I turned my back after answering, walking deeper into the forest. Inside the verdant forest, moonlight didn't touch the ground.
Hirata quietly followed me, and both our figures were enveloped in darkness. After walking for a minute or two, we came across a small open space between the trees. It was a small spot, blessed with moonlight.

Inside it, I sat down on the grass.

Tap Tap

I patted the ground near me twice, gesturing to Hirata to sit down.

However, Hirata didn't sit down. His senses were on high alert. I don't know if it was voluntary, but the fist of his dominant hand was balled.

Unrest in his actions was understandable. He couldn't help but feel frightened from what he had witnessed earlier tonight.

"I'm not your enemy Hirata, calm down," I said, trying to unwind him.

"Enemy or friend, you aren't a trustworthy person, Ayanokouji." He denied lowering his guard.

"You expect me to be trustworthy after you were going to sell my name to Ryuuen?" My question reminded him of the malafide intentions he harboured against me.

"I... that was the only way..." Guilt crossed his face. Whatever be the reason, in the end, he was going to sell a classmate to the devil.

"Don't feel guilty at this point, what you were doing was for the greater good. That's something not many people could do." I complimented him.

On hearing my words, his breathing calmed down a little. All he wanted to hear was that the sacrifice he was going to make wasn't in vain.

He shook his head, apparently recalling the consequences of his moves.

"In the end it didn't stop him either," he replied resignedly. He betrayed me, and even that backfired at him. Even though he failed, he put in valiant effort.

"Indeed, stopping a force like him would've taken more than that."

"In the end, all I did was put up some insignificant resistance." He was dead focused on his failure. It's natural to berate oneself when taking a high risk backfires.

Herodotous once said:'The worst pain a man can suffer: to have insight into much and power over nothing.'

As much as Hirata wanted to stop Ryuuen, he simply couldn't. Given his past, the pain of failure must've been immeasurable for him.

"I'm a failure, but you aren't... I request you to—"

"It's useless. I won't be leading the class, Hirata." I answered before he could complete his words.

"But why? You can—"
"Ichinose and Horikita once brought the same request to me, however, they had to act as my cover in exchange." I took a brief pause. "I hope you remember how that ended."
"Yes, now that they're exposed I doubt our classmates will trust them again."

"Exactly. Without them our class is headless. My information network is crippled as well. We need someone to establish order again." I admitted.

"I wish there was someone like that. Kushida has an information network but she lacks the qualities to lead... You've already tormented Karuizawa a lot, I can't ask her to lead at this point." Hirata was lost. As much as he wanted to see his old class, the roots of distrust had already found their way deep into our class.

"Just if you reveal yourself it would all get settled." He worded his rather selfish request.

"It won't be that easy. First of all, I won't do it. Secondly, even if I did, those who want to doubt will doubt even me to be a pawn of 'X'." I rebuked him for his wrong approach.
"You used to be similar to Kushida, however, you made the decision to change your role. You outsourced the information collection to Ichinose, you used Karuizawa. You decided to become the balancing weight to establish order in class and hunt down the traitor." I narrated the motives behind his actions. In response, all he did was nod slightly.

"It was a commendable effort, Hirata. You might've failed, but now, the class needs you to take the command once more." I was done berating him. What I wanted him to do was focus on the future aspects.
"I can't force them to acknowledge me, I've stepped back already. Even if I hadn't, I could never match up to Ichinose when it comes to leading. With Karuizawa gone, I don't think I can do it." His words were sombre. He was repenting once again.

"Brooding over past is a sign of incompetence. Never display that again in front of me." I commanded, the harmless nature slowly evaporating from my eyes.

"Ichinose and Horikita might have lost influence," I continued, "but will you let the class fall into chaos just because of that?"

"But what can I even do?"

"I will tell you that. In order to save the class, are you ready to cooperate with me?" The choice to take the devil's hand was presented to Hirata. If he truly seeks salvation in self sacrifice, then he won't resist.

"I will first hear your proposal."

"I have nothing to tell you if you aren't ready to work for me." Conditions were simple.

"...Alright then. What should I do?" He awaited further orders.

"For starters, let me beat you up a little."

"Huh?"

Hirata's POV (next afternoon before lunch in the cafeteria)

"Hirata, we're getting late for lunch." Sudou complained, hunger getting the better of him.

"Alright, let's go." My eyes felt heavy from the lack of sleep. I wish it didn't affect my performance in the exam.

Even when speaking, my right cheek would hurt a little. The dull throb brought back memories, memories of my flesh being struck by Ayanokouji.

With Akito and Sudou accompanying me, I made my way to the cafeteria. We were a little late to lunch, as per the plan.

When the gates opened I noticed the unrest in the air — Ryuuen Kakeru was missing from the scene.

Numerous gazes fell upon my face. Even though I had been avoiding them, the girls of my class rushed at the sight of my injuries.

"Hirata-kun! What happened to your face?!"

"Did you fall down?!"
"Oh no! His face will be like before, right?"

They said from a distance, they were wary of me, yet they couldn't help but feel worried about my injuries.

Deep down in my heart I felt warm. I can't let the clouds of danger loom over my precious friends.

"Get the hell away from him!" Karuizawa interfered. Even though had gone through so much during recent days, she possessed a caring heart for me.

"Hey, let him answer us!" A girl retorted at her, I gave her a stern look, noticing she was unwelcomed she distanced herself.

"Yousuke, are you alright?" Karuizawa asked me, ignoring the other girls.

I tried to smile a little, after a long time. Yet, my lips hurt from it.

"I am alright," I said slowly. The girls surrounding us simmered down. A few people from other classes had also surrounded us to see what's going on.

Ichinose made her way into the inner circle as well, accompanied by Mei, both of them hesitant to interrupt us.

"How did this happen? Don't tell me..." It was slow, but the realisation dawned upon her.

If things are going according to his prediction, then the rumours of Ryuuen's retirement must've caught wind.

"No one will threaten you now, Kei. Ryuuen won't be following your trail anymore." I reassured her.

"Huh? What do you mean, Hirata?" Satou interrupted us. "Do you mean it's true that Ryuuen has retired?! Don't tell me you fought him..." The words seemed bizarre to most but they couldn't ignore the possibility.

The excitement slowly vanished from their faces when they realised the situation.

As Satou worded it, Karuizawa stared at me blankly for a moment. Her eyes roved around the cafeteria. I felt bitter when her gaze rested on Ayanokouji.

He sat there eating his lunch, perfectly unscathed. There were no signs of battle on him.

Become the 'hero' she is waiting for.
His words echoed in my mind.

As if reaching a conclusion, Karuizawa faced me. Tears of joy rolled down her cheek.

"Yousuke... you did it for me?"
I just nodded to her question. For Karuizawa, who was unaware of the prowess Ayanokouji possessed, it was natural her conclusion inclined towards me, who stood in front of her, beaten up.
A shadow of guilt crossed her face. She had a hard time, but at last she mustered up the courage to look into my eyes.

".. I am sorry... I ... I.."

You betrayed me.

"Don't fret about that, it's alright now." My words stopped her midway. Shaking her head vigorously, she hugged me tightly.

"Wooh! Hawt."

"Does that mean Hirata took down Ryuuen?!!"

"Impossible!" Kushida wasn't ready to believe it. Considering the very possibility of a fight, most of the girls felt nervous.
"But Ryuuen is missing and his lackeys are all beat up as well." Shinohara countered Kushida. "Did you fight him Hirata? Who was there with you?" Shinohara dared to ask.

"I don't have anything to discuss." I declined any inquiry related to that matter. The best choice was to let people assume what they wanted to.

Amidst the barrage of questions, Karuizawa slowly left me. As much as she wanted to thank me, right now wasn't the right time.

I looked over my shoulders. Akito hated attention, so no wonder he was gone. Horikita was talking to Sudou, apparently about the mark on his neck. I had told him not to give any information to others, however, I highly doubt he would keep things from Horikita.

Even after her name was muddied, Sudou didn't show any signs of leaving her side.

"I mean, Hirata-kun might be strong but Ryuuen-kun is in a different league." Nishino from Class C didn't buy the story.

"Guys, it can be the work of 'X'." Amidst the voices supporting me, Mako Amikura coined the possibility in a nervous voice.

On the mere mention of the name, the assembly went silent.

There will be those that buy the story and believe Hirata defeated Ryuuen; others will assume it was done by 'X'. In both the cases, your position will stay alleviated: either you possess the abilities to defeat Ryuuen or you're the one that masks the existence of 'X'. Both the existences are fearsome.

I recalled his words. I must play my role correctly, I am standing on the shoulder of a giant, one careless slip could cause the downfall of the situation.

"That's true. If Hirata-kun was able to protect Karuizawa-san, wouldn't he have done that earlier?" Matsushita seconded the opinion.

"I mean how dumb are you guys to believe Hirata could take down Ryuuen." The one to stop the parade was Ibuki.

"F* off, Ibuki. You know nothing about Hirata."
Clap Clap

"What's all this fuss about ladies?" Nagumo senpai interrupted the conversation.

"Senpai-" Before Shinohara could speak, Ichinose stopped her.

"Actually I fell down the stairs last night, so my face got a little wounded." I answered before anyone else could.

"Haha, you don't need to act like that Hirata-kun. Small skirmishes between students are a part of school life," Nagumo senpai said with a smile, but it didn't reach his eye. "It seems like the leader of the small group under my command has retired." He added.

He might've wanted me to admit what I did, however, I can't make a mistake that naive.

"Who're the students from his Class again?" He asked, turning towards the crowd. The students of Class C raised their hands.

Leaving his table, Kaneda stepped forward to talk with the Student Council President.

"Ryuuen-san was from our class senpai."

"I see, I see. I remember you are in my big group as well?"

"Yes, senpai."

"Do you remember I had a challenge against Horikita Manabu?" The students who were oblivious to the bet threw confused glances at each other.
"Y-Yes..."
"You see, now with 'Ryuuen-san' gone, I'm going to suffer a loss of around ten million points..." The sheer amount of points stunned the students in the cafeteria.

"Now that I'm not going to win... I was thinking what would happen if I got the last place in the big group competition..."

If that happens, then the leader of the small group whose average was below the set line will get expelled.

"S-Senpai, we are extremely sorry but Ryuuen-san's health was in very poor condition." Kaneda bowed his head and apologised nervously.

"Fufu, you two were so confident when playing cards against us. I hope you understand that you should never mess up with your seniors again."

"Yes, senpai. Pardon my insolence." The acting leader of Class C bowed in front of the president.

I don't know what cards those two were talking about, but it was easy to understand that the scenario was engineered for Nagumo senpai's entertainment.

Even if he wanted to punish Ryuuen, he couldn't just go for the last place in the big group competition. For the third year, the end of their journey was imminent. Even one slip up could result in defeat. Thus, there is no way they would allow even Nagumo senpai to mess up with the results to the point where their big group comes last.

Essentially, Nagumo senpai was representing the anger of the senior year. He wanted Kaneda to apologise on behalf of Class C.

Taking the chance, I slowly moved out from the crowd and grabbed my lunch. Since we were late the lunch time would be over anytime now—

Rinnggggggg

My food...

—--

Chapter- 22 (Last day)

Chapter- 22

Hiyori's POV

It was our last night in the open school. Each night we gathered together, right after a warm, cleansing bath, right before the call of slumber; like children that gathered round the roaring fire to listen to the stories of their nattering grandparents.

The cover of the night leaves soon. The children, being grown-up, leaves. Fairy tales becomes a thing of memory. And just like that, the distance between the girls have grown wider the past two days.

In the centre, Sakayanagi-san sat on her chair, surrounded by a flock of girls from Class A and Class B. They chattered, giggled, smiled – they socialised seamlessly, as if plucking out any differences, any prejudices from themselves with masterful ease. It was deserving of applause; indeed it was, for it was so unlike us — Class C and Class D. A wide chasm parted two sorts of students – backs racking with laughter, and shoulders heaving down with melancholy. Was this it, the clear divide between the elites and the dregs of society? Comparison, truly, heightens this terrible superiority.

Propped on a chair beside Ibuki, my attention on a book held in my hand was out somewhere else, like a reflection forever plucked out from a mirror. Ichinose-san and Mei-san were studying on their bed. Kushida-san in particular has distanced herself from most of us. She didn't interact much with Ichinose-san or Horikita-san. She used to interact with us a lot, but now I only see her eyes brimming with scepticism. It seems that the battle between 'X' and Ryuuen had destroyed far more than what met my eyes.

She must be having a hard time thinking about 'X'... well, I'm no different.

"Sakayanagi-san, you're the smartest person I know." Hitomi-san from Class A complimented the leader of her enemy class.

"Fufu, I'm flattered."

"Do you know who 'X' might be? Ryuuen was after 'X' but he is nowhere to be seen now." The curious Hitomi inquired.
"I have a bad feeling discussing this..." Ando-san said in an uneasy tone.

"According to my friends, last night Ryuuen had declared that he would crush 'X'... apparently both of them clashed, and now you can see the result." Sakayanagi mentioned the obvious. Her goal wasn't to answer Hitomi in first place. "Horikita-san, maybe you can tell us what kind of person 'X' is?"

"Not this again, Sakayanagi-san. We've been over this, I've nothing to tell you about them."
"Fufufu, it's alright. I merely like to tease you."

Horikita-san went back to her work, avoiding any further conversation on the matter.

"Ibuki-san, you're pretty close to Ryuuen-kun. Maybe he told you the true identity of 'X'? Or did he go down without even decoding that much?"

"Tch.." Her next target was Ibuki-san, but no matter how irritated she felt, she avoided a conversation with Sakayanagi.

I had strictly forbidden her to do so. Or else, before she knew, she would leak out information on our part.

For a moment, I saw Ichinose-san raise her head from her notebook. Her eyes meandered throughout the room. Eventually, my gaze met her meandering visage. Eyes gleaming brightly with the colour of summer joy, now a thing of the past. In its rightful place, specks of despondency peppered her expression.

The regret and her sombre expression deeply troubled me.

Maybe it would've been better if I just read my books.

—--

Hiyori's POV (Next morning the day of final exam)

Our small group gathered in Zazen Dojo. The test was going to be held in four phases: 'Zen', 'Speech', 'Long distance relay', and 'Written exam'.

Starting from Zazen, we were seated in a completely different order than usual. I was seated beside Kushida-san. Sakayanagi-san was missing out on the 'Zazen' and 'Long distance relay', so the other spot beside me was empty.

I closed my eyes, trying to meditate. Trying to escape the whirling thoughts of the consequences brought forth by my actions was nothing but an exercise in futility. Unbidden, the memories floated to the surface of my mind.

All was going well. I had judged my actions to be a boon. To save Karuizawa-san and Manabe-san from the ominous fate descending on them... I took matters in my hands, sought to smother out that piece of insidious evil. The disaster was averted, and the two girls were saved. But, I was a naive girl. Was I blind? Did I fail to notice it? What was the wrong step? I believed, naively. I thought, good will finally triumph.

"The end justifies the means. But what if there never is an end? All we have is means."

One sacrifice, leading to another. It always starts from one. An eye for an eye would make the whole world go blind.

Even though I couldn't oppose Ryuuen-kun myself, I tried to achieve the result without offering those sacrifices.

Ryuuen-san has retired from this test.

Kaneda's words in the cafeteria made me realise the grave mistake I made.

Why? Last night, he clashed against 'X'... it was a nightmare... He fought valiantly, but in the end he was crushed.

When faced with the feral aura of Ryuuen Kakeru, I had submitted to his will quietly. Even though I was strictly against it, I knew my will didn't hold a candle when faced against him.

To think someone like Ryuuen-san... was crushed. Was there really such a wide gulf of power between him and his opponent? I asked myself.

What he went through last night... anyone would break. Just remembering it makes me nauseous.

Even though it was subconsciously, I took it for granted that Ryuuen-san would win once he found 'X'. However, 'X' turned out to be an existence that was in a league above him?

Impossible... my mind said. Nevertheless, reality narrated a different tale.

"Shiina Hiyori, you can leave now." The voice of our instructor halted my gloomy train of thought.

"Y-Yes, thank you." I bowed my head and left the dojo.

With the 'Zen' part of the exam done, we moved on to the writing part of the exam immediately.

With my head down, I scribbled whatever I could remember from the past few days. As much as I wanted to think up thoughtful answers, I couldn't focus on writing convincing answers. In the end, they were all just information dumps; correct, yet lacklustre at the same time.

Once the written exam was over, our small group were boarded into the vans. We were dropped at the same eighteen kilometres track we used to cover daily.

In the long distance relay race, I was given the task to cover 1.2km. The amount appeared measly when I realised that Ibuki-san and Horikita-san will be covering a distance of 3.6 km each.

We were dropped according to our order. I was the sixth one. Once the van dropped me off at the designated spot, I spotted a few other girls from different small groups. Unfortunately, I didn't know any of them, so all I could do was ponder alone.

Looking at the girls warming up around me, I was reminded of the sports festival. Ryuuen-kun had obtained the participation table of Class D, however, he didn't stop at that.

He targeted Horikita-san. For that he had sacrificed Kinoshita-san, the ace of our class. In my eyes, it was an imprudent move. However, Ryuuen-kun had obtained outstanding results in the Zodiac exam preceding the sports festival. Even though he took an incautious course of action, the students followed him, enduring the pain in hopes of victory.

Was it that recklessness that led to his downfall? I asked myself when I saw the result of the sports festival.

Our class came last due to the absence of Kinoshita-san... No, that's wrong. Ryuuen-kun must've predicted that in absence of Horikita and Sudou Class D's performance the recommended participants would be crippled. That should've placed Class D at the last spot.

The sudden rising of Koenji Rokusuke and Ayanokouji-kun took the whole school by surprise. Both of them displayed athletic prowess I had never witnessed before. At the end, Class D was able to get third place in the sports festival. They lost a total fifty of class points: a victory when compared to other classes.

Class B had come second. However, due to the loss of White team they suffered a damage of hundred class points which was very crucial to their cutthroat competition with the newly crowned Class A.

On the other hand, due to coming in the last position , we suffered a grave loss of two hundred class points.

Class D had closed in on us. 'X' had directly contacted Ryuuen-kun. Both planned and played their moves correctly... But, I messed up my role.

Am I the reason Ryuuen-kun lost? What if he knows about my betrayal already? Am I any different if I betrayed my own classmate?

A thought flickered in my mind, and, unwittingly, I hated every fibre of my being. The worst of both sinners and saints. I walked behind his back, in my arrogance–incapability–to usher peace, but I merely bought damnation.

—--

BONUS CHAPTER: Chairman Sakayanagi's POV

Chairman's POV (By a guest author)

"Sakayanagi..." Ayanokōji-sensei said, heavy legs marching towards me. And as he did, his bodyguards matched his steps.

While wariness crept up my spine, I stood my ground. This is quite a debacle admittedly.

"Your father was a wise person. He found this school and passed down his legacy to you. You had an intelligent wife too. In front of her, your existence was that of a fool. Yet, you loved her regardless and you thought she did too."

What? Bafflement clouded my thoughts at those words. Where did his goal lay with this? And – why did he mention her?

"Soon you realised that there wasn't a shred of love for you in her. She was just doing all this to climb up in society. She didn't care a thing about you or your child that she was carrying with her. Even after your protests, she never quit drinking during her pregnancy. Ultimately, the child was born as a cripple."
My eyes turned wide. The gusts of shock wiped out the clouds of perplexity. To obtain even this information, what did he resolve to? My mind ran through several possibilities. Bribery, blackmailing, and what not he ought to have done? I should not be surprised. It's him after all.

"You realised you were worthless when she left behind you and your child alone after a few years of giving birth. Till date, you two aren't divorced but what was the last time you saw her?" Ayanokōji-sensei said, his words prickling away at my psyche. "Seven years ago? Eight years ago?"

The relentless castigation continued unimpeded like tidal waves crashing against the shore. My mind tensed in preparation, but to no avail. My composure quaked at the onslaught of secrets thrown like sharpened blades.

"H-How do you know about this?" My voice slightly broke. I held it together, however, with considerable conscious effort.

"I know this because that is what the society wants you to believe, that is the illusion you were allowed to live in. That you are trash who never deserved a lady like your wife, she was far superior, and so and so."

Already pushed down by the weight of the unveiling, my confusion grew even further at his next words.

"Scratch all that and listen to me," he said and grew silent for a bit. The graveness of this moment grew in intensity.

"I expect you're well acquainted with the term Eugenics." In reply to his unexpected words, I gave a slight nod.

"The movement to promote the genetically superior race to develop humanity to its perfect form, discarding any and every defect that the race carried."

A sickening, foolish advocacy of beliefs.

"What about it? That is an ancient relic?" I asked. From the deep recess of mind, a feeling surfaced. I lost; it won. For it painted my voice with fright. The reality of the situation, like inky mire, was settling deep in my heart, and I averted my eyes from it.

"An ancient relic? It is still going strong, progressing even as we speak," he said, cutting through the wrapping I lay extant. "The leaders of the eugenic movement never ceased their experiments. With their power in society, they would pick up the finest individuals humanity could offer to breed them further."

The wrapping shielding me was shredded apart by the preceding course of events. I had inferred it. I had hidden it. I had ignored the cries of reality. I had leapt to hope. But now...

"Your wife..." The unceasing rain of words hanging in the air continued unforgivingly.

"She was the finest specimen Japan had to offer—"

She, truly, was one of a kind of her generation. That cold brilliance of hers, I can't forget it yet.

"But she wasn't an easy one to obtain. At first, she had married you to seek protection from the people hunting her down. I have known a few people of that kind. They would give up any and everything at their disposal to protect themselves. As long as they have the means to protect themselves, they will do it."

Feelings I thought to have overcome clawed inside me. The terrible repetition of pain; I persevered through. But it was there, inside. I knew that.

"With your help, she was able to evade the agents who pursued her, ready to sacrifice you and your empire if needed to protect herself."

My muscles had fallen loose. How in the world did sensei come to know of this?

"But her plan went downhill when she actually fell in love with you. The shelter you provided her gave her the room to feel the emotions her heart was yearning for, to live the life she had been longing for—"

What–—–

My eyes snapped at him, widening in utter disbelief.
"Ever since she crossed her adolescent years, men had been sent by the association attempting to seduce her. Always on guard, her youth only had one happy memory. That was you, and now in order to protect what she loved, she was ready to sacrifice herself."

"W-Wait no way..." She who shunned my love? My mouth was wide open. In spite of all the kisses, roses, and luxurious dinners I showered on her, married her, my love fell underneath her feet, flattened. She didn't want it.

My sight grew hazy as if in a mist. Thump. My heart ached. Thump. My heart's beating filled my ears. I was steeped in relief. Such a revelation, unbelievable.

But, then, why did she leave? I-I... did I do something wrong?

"She understood as long as she would be with you, you will never find peace. It didn't only end at that. She had predicted that her own child would be targeted one day by the monsters who haunted her, thus she made sure that the child would be born as a cripple. Your daughter won't be targeted by the Eugenics association as long as she had a congenital defect."

Terror chilled me to the core. Self-sacrifice? All this time... my love was reciprocated. But – why, why. Why did it happen? Saving Arisu by crippling her, I was turned inarticulate.
"What you inferred to be a curse to your daughter given by your wife, was actually the last blessing she could give you all. Once her daughter came of age, her time was up."

A heart frozen; piercing it was a failure. That was what I came to know. A beauty like a mythical snow fairy; love towards me was a foreign concept to her. That was what I came to believe. But no, she loved me far more than I could imagine. After all this, how could I... just let her be a forgotten sacrifice? I can't let her be in pain. Pain I knew far too well.

"Where is she now?!" My cry beat at the night air. I will find you, Akiyo. This time, I'll never let your light vanish.

"She longs to meet you as well. I myself have met her in the facility they have been keeping her."

"You have met her?!"

Met her; met her. That means...could he be aware of where she is? Hah. My breath hitched. I've to meet her. I can't squander any second. Just imagining the pain Akiyo must've endured... I felt my bones creak under the weight of the seconds of life lived in suffering.

"Yes, I have other business to attend in the facility she is held captive in. She is in a pitiful state and her spirit is slowly breaking away, but it is your memories that keeps her together."

"Akiyo... why... why is it that she needs to go through all this?" Why; I continued questioning. My heart was aching and tinged with despair.

"You don't have even the slightest hint of her suffering. She had requested me personally not to let you find out any of this. To this day, she endures all of it silently for your family, but I can tell from looking at her. Deep down, she wants to be freed of the misery she is going through. It won't be late until she..."
No; no; no. I can't let that happen. Absolutely not.

I scrambled out of the ring of men guarding me. Thoughts of her, her once in a blue moon smiles, ate more and more deeply at me.

"Please! Sensei! I beg you to help me get to her!"

I looked up at him, my desperate figure reflecting in his brown eyes. Seeing that sight reflected back, my mind drifts back to memories.

The man standing in front of me extended his arm.

My salvation was hung by thread. A thread that could break in a breeze.

– The last scene of her embracing our daughter.

Please, don't throw it away.

"Help me get this brat out of here, and I will use everything at my disposal to snatch your wife out the hands of those monsters."

My hands quivered ever so slightly. I had made many wishes, but they turned out to be false. Now here in the cradle of hope, with my fingers stretched out, illuminating in the moonlight, I felt my awareness flicker, in and out, unto a storm of disbelief and madness. And I felt like little flames, unguarded.

"Sensei..." I reached out to the thread of hope renewed as unbroken.

"Reconsider your actions, Sakayanagi." A young voice halted my steps. Ah, Kiyotaka-kun...

"Don't interrupt when adults are speaking." Sensei warned him. With his sharp gaze, he looked at him as if the interruption incensed him.

"The man standing in front of you — he lacks the means to rescue your wife..."

"What..." Further words got stuck in my throat. The chilling air of the silent night took hold of it being frozen. That's wrong, he can—

"His only hope to beat the Eugenics Movement is me — his only success."
"Ignorant child, since the facility has reopened there has been numerous successes."

In a single year..?

"If that was true, you won't be pulling off these stunts just to retrieve me."

Kiyotaka-kun pointed to the slumped men and the singular dead man. My eyes scurried guiltily.

"If the public found out, then your dreams of making a comeback would go down the drain." He continued.

"The talent you show is extraordinary. Such loss would be detrimental." Sensei said.

He was outstanding last I saw him in that place. How vast is his talent now?

"If I am expelled from this academy, then I won't be providing any help in rescuing your wife. Instead, I might even sabotage the mission."

A threat. To me, to Akiyo? Cold; it's so terribly cold. The child who had become acceptable now horrified me.

"You..." I uttered; a struggle in my mind, and words were interrupted once again.
"Don't listen to him, Sakayanagi. He is my property; he has no right to refuse me. Once he is back to White Room, he will have no choice but to follow the path I chose for him."

Such an atrocious treatment, it wasn't alright. Everything couldn't be alright. The struggle in my heart wasn't finished, but I was relieved – for a victory against the sham of a threat.

I had a duty; heavier than a mountain. But... I, also, had a belief; lighter than a feather. And so my insides fluttered with an indescribable sensation.

"... Yes, you are right. Once I am back to that place, I will have no choice but to keep following the silhouette I see in front of me. My autonomy is a dream that I will never achieve it seems." Kiyotaka-kun said in admittance of the truth.

Sensei let out a light smile. That his ineffable hold over a child's life was, even now, alive.

"Perhaps to escape this all, I will just end this suffering..." He said, apathetic with indifference and helplessness.

Horror gripped me, and I let out a gasp.

"What sort of nonsense are you speaking? You out of all people should know that you aren't capable of doing that. No matter what happens, the only direction you can move is forward."

"You will sacrifice whatever it takes to keep yourself safe. Self-harm is something you can't even dream of."

"..." I gazed at the man besides me. Hell was empty, for the devil stood here.

"...You're right about that as well," Kiyotaka-kun replied to his father.

It had become hideously clear again. Sensei's twisted intent, flinging him back into his palm.

"Wasn't your wife's mindset similar to mine before she met you? I wonder what she felt that led her down the path of self-sacrifice. Was it love? How would it feel? I can't help but think about that feeling."

I stayed silent. My insides heaved, labouring, as I clutched together the pieces of my scattered thoughts. For the two to have such experiences, inhuman.

"Don't listen to the rubbish he speaks. In order to gain something, you must sacrifice something. This has gone long enough."

Desires grew smaller and narrower. To preserve individual lives and simultaneously hold the will to sacrifice those very lives if... the cause is sufficient.

"Can you live happily in a future you forged by tarnishing a child's life, a child the same age as your own daughter?"

I can't let Akiyo suffer... I won't ever permit that. But, that question possessed a power that I could not put in an answer.

"That leads me to the question: what is the congenital heart disease that your daughter has? Is it Atrial Septal Defect? Or Ventricular Septal Defect?"

I could not think of words for what he aimed for with this inquiry.

"...It is Atrial Septal Defect." At last, I chose to answer.

"The growth of her body is stunted. The doctors won't operate the hole in her heart until and unless she qualifies the minimum physical standards to undergo the open heart surgery. Am I wrong?"

Reminded of the bitter reality, I could do nothing but agree.

"You will have no choice but to stand back and look at your daughter as she dies. If you dare attempt a surgery, then that would lead to inevitable death as well. In other words, you know your daughter doesn't have a long life waiting for her."
Breath hitching abruptly, I tipped my head. Never can I forget those moments, those moments where I was faced with the truth of Arisu's condition.

"... I don't know why you are saying all of this right now, but it isn't something I would talk to you about."

I can't talk about these things to anyone.
"That would be a foolish move. Your daughter isn't a lost cause that the medical science of today announces her to be."
"Huh?" I stood stunned.

"No matter what path you take, you don't have a future in which your daughter will smile back at you. That is what you might believe, however, let me tell you that isn't necessarily that hopeless case."

Not a hopeless case? I tried, tried so much. Seeking help from so many doctors but none, not one of them, could do anything. Your abilities might be incredible but can you even do something? All my hopes have been tossed away like cremated carcasses.
"In the White Room, as my final Cardiothoracic surgery practical exam, I had joined a team of top surgeons in order to progress the research of this disease. The head of that team was none other than Kurihara Komugi, who went by the alias of Mimuro Midori in the White Room."

At those words, my body stiffened and turned rigid. While still uncertain, I prompted him to continue. But that doctor, then, does that mean...

"The research we were involved in had heavy casualties. Countless test subjects lost their lives as we performed surgeries on humans with physical defects or an underdeveloped body. It was too much for Kurihara to bear, and thus once the research date ended she retired."

If she were fine then... no, there's nothing to be done. I threw away the fantasies into the unknown corners of my mind.

"If I am not wrong, then she retired four years ago in the month of March, since that was the time our research had ended. The psychological damage she took during that project made her unable to do anymore surgeries."

My mind trembled as I realised his point.

"You know that... that means..." Out of my control, I started believing his words.
"Yes. Halfway through the project, she stepped down as the leader and I was the leader of that project."

The leader? To have skills to substitute her. The thoughts rolled around in my mind, repeating as I processed them more than once.

"By the end of the project, I had done countless surgeries on people with not much different stature compared to that of your daughter."
"W-What was the end result?" I asked. If possible, then, then, could he?

"In the end, I could perform a surgery with a success rate of ninety percent. Only in cases of an existing neurological defect would it go downhill."

Sensei isn't refuting him. That means, this isn't a lie. This isn't a lie.

"If that is the case, then he will treat your daughter under my command as well." Sensei said, confirming both my conclusion and his stupefying claim.

"That won't happen. The solution to your problem is something only I have. If I decide against it, then I can just let the surgery fail and blame it on my inability."

What can I do? Veins throbbed in my head as my mind was filled with a barrage of thoughts. I cannot stop if he decides to go through it.

"On top of that, this man has been training me for all these years so that one day I can surpass him. If you understand that is the natural course of action, then you should also get the fact that I can rescue your wife myself as well."

Two paths forked out in front of me. If I step onto one, the other will forever be lost; unable to retrace my steps.

"The child isn't capable of whatever he says. Don't believe him."

A man's words echoed.

"You have your choice. Will you see a future with your daughter?"

A child's question resonated.

I clutched at my head, the head pulsing with a sharp pain as I flitted from one thought to another. Decisions, past memories, regrets, consequences, Akiyo's suffering, Arisu's destiny, father's legacy. Ah, what can, can I even do. What is right?

"Will you choose the past or the future? Your daughter can still be saved, if you keep me in your school, that is. You can save the lives of two children and your wife."

"Sakayanagi, this has been drawn out long enough. You expel this child right now."

My mind was enveloped by a thick smog, a smog weighing down all the frailty upon me.

"Your beloved wife doesn't have much time left, if you don't comply here then there is a good chance you won't even see her dead body."

Unable to move a muscle, I couldn't speak a word of protest. No, not her.

"Even if her fertile years are over they can't discard a valuable specimen that your wife is."
Akiyo is invaluable. Yes, they can't do that, can't. Not to her.

"In hindsight, within a year or two your daughter will start suffering heart palpitations or skipping beats. Your wife might not be here, but your daughter is all you had from the beginning to the end. It would be such a tragedy to watch her die while holding your hands."

As if standing in front of a window to another world, my eyes saw an indescribable horror: Tucked under white covers, Arisu breaths; her skin like a doll, frail; eyelids slipping, almost shutting. (No) Akiyo lay frozen, like glass that could shatter at a touch, laying inside a boundary of emptiness. (No)

"Have faith in yourself. Collect yourself and decide," said Kiyotaka-kun. "Whatever it will be I will accept it, of course with the conditions I mentioned. Whatever it will be, it will be your decision. I don't plan on influencing you any further."

It felt like I was passing through eternity as I desperately arrived at the answer. Time passed away like a summer cloud in the early hours of dawn as I gathered my strength, all my strength to form words.

"Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, you do understand that sneaking out of the building at night is punishable by expulsion?"

"..."

He stood silent, not a word of answer.
"Go back in. I will overlook this once, but next time I won't be able to protect you."
I saw sensei standing beside us clenching his fist in irritation.

"Sensei, I want to—"
"Words aren't needed anymore. You've chosen your side."
"But—"
"Your wife is already dead."

Torn apart, tearing apart my heart, he walked back. Could this be a nightmare? Just an unimaginable nightmare?

I stared at the indifferent rising sun. I no longer felt anything, not anything I could put a word to. Perhaps though, if there was one thing: fatigue. My body was overcome by fatigue, the fatigue enveloped me. My foot ached with fatigue. It stuck to me like glue.

"Ayanokouji-kun..." I called out his name as I saw him walking back. I did not think of why I did so.

"Do you think my wife is still alive?"

I asked, my mouth quivering, as if it's cold despite no cold wind blowing and the warm rays of sunlight casting its light.

"The probability of that is very low, but if she is as talented as I have heard then it might be possible that she found a way to survive."

"I see." Yes, Akiyo has always been ahead of me. If it's her... I stopped any thoughts of that however.

"I hope you learn a lot here, Ayanokouji-kun." I said, trying to give him a smile. From the depths of my heart, I wish for that.
"I hope the same."

[Hey guys Papakoji here, since the starting of this volume I had a very talented author supporting me as my editor. This chapter is written by him, now that you have a glimpse of his writing talent I will tell you more about him in the afterword following this bonus chapter.]

Afterword (:)

That concludes this arc, as promised in the previous afterword I've deviated far from canon. And I will tell you, things will just deviate further from now on, this volume took most of my stamina when compared to any of the previous one's I wrote.

With that said, I would like your feedback so I can understand your views more. To make it easier I will ask two questions.

First, what was it in this volume that just didn't fit well with you, or wasn't to your liking? Basically, what I could've improved?

Second, what was it in this volume that you really liked?

Any other suggestions regarding my writing style?

--

Before moving on, I would like to introduce you all to my editor CiCi!
He's been editing my works on this fic since the beginning of this volume, I don't know if it reflected in my works or not, but his contributions are priceless. On top of that, I learnt a lot about writing from him. Personally, I am a big fan of his writing, currently I am beta reading one of his fics too, it's based on 4th generation WR. You would've gotten a glimpse of his writing in the previous bonus chapter, so if you're interested make sure to check out the fic. (I will add the link in comments of this para)

--

My college just went offline suddenly so I'm going to be really busy in the coming time. However, I will try to bring another volume to you all as soon as possible. New leader systems of Class C and Class D are coming into light, the next special exam will be none other than the paper shuffle. I would suggest you follow me so you don't miss it, another reason to do so is that I'm going to start a new fic.
Yes, even though I'm short on time.

This new fic will be MATURE, even though its gonna be a lemon, I've planned a complex plot easily on the level of this fic, it won't just have a ship, it will have a whole fleet. The class battles, the S system, the characters, none will lose their congruence.

I hope you enjoyed reading, see you all.

️

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